Alternate Reality
by Zena Airale
Summary: *AU OF S8 AND GREATER WHERE GARMADON WAS NEVER TURNED EVIL* Garmadon and Wu Kamiare are the two sons of the First Spinjitzu Master, Hikari, and the guardians of Ninjago. As darkness arises, the Kamiares, their descendants, their students and extended family, as well as their comrades, must endure the hardships coming their way. Collab with ElinaLunaStar on Wattpad.
1. Origins (Arc I)

Long before time had a name, there was the First Realm of Oni and Dragon, Kigana. There lived two powerful tribes that control the forces that would later create the Sixteen Realms. The tribe of light are known as Dragons, ruled by the first dragon named Sukuri. The tribe of darkness are known as Oni, ruled by the first oni named Tohakai.

Though they both have a goal to keep the light and darkness balanced, the Oni and Dragon were mortal enemies. They started a never-ending war, both sides having equal power that cancel each other out. The endless battles caused the First Realm to evolve quickly from civilizations advancing to It was then the First Spinjitzu Master, Hikari was created, with powers over both. Due to the immense energy, the Oni and Dragon fought over what side he would end up choosing in the war, since they knew that he was the key to winning.

Hikari befriended the Firstbourne Dragon, and together, they created the Golden Dragon Armor, and sought to unite the two races of the realm. What Hikari did not realize was that the both sides were after him so they could control him and end the war on their favor. However, when he did find out, he knew he could not stay. Despondently, he left the armor to be guarded by the Firstbourne and The First Spinjitzu Master then created a relic called the Realm Crystal and escaped through a portal to a realm that would soon be born as Ninjago.

When the Oni found out about the escape, they were furious. Tohakai, reigning as the dark king of the Oni, created Yakunan, the Overlord, to bring Hikari back to the First Realm and end the war in their favor. This goal have brought on another never-ending battle that not only ended up becoming an important part of Ninjago's history, but will bring about a great calamity to all the realms. Yakunan and the First Spinjitzu Master fought fiercely but neither of them could gain the upper hand. But the Overlord refused to accept defeat, so he created the Stone Army, a legion of nearly indestructible warriors, shifting the balance to his side. Knowing he would soon fall and to keep the darkness from gripping the world, Hikari decided to split the land into two separate islands: Ninjago and the Island of Darkness, Kunesua.

Millenniums passed since the Great Battle between light and darkness, and Ninjago grew into the peaceful land that is known today. Hikari finally settled in peace, bearing two sons: Garmadon and Wu Kamiare. Garmadon was destined to turn evil, as he had inherited his father's destruction powers, but Wu, who inherited creation powers, refused to let that happen. Garmadon refused as well. They were too close. Wu gave some of his own powers to him in order to prevent the inevitable corruption, but they were able to regenerate. Fortunately, their father gave Garmadon special teachings to control the darkness within him, as he knew that his eldest son would hold an important role in the future.

Centuries passed since Wu and Garmadon's birth, and the Kamiare Brothers soon had families of their own.

The first of the children is the master of wind, Morro Sakura, the patient and no-nonsense adopted son of Wu. He used to live a hard, abusive family life and escaped into the streets when he was only five. After rummaging the trash for food around the Brothers' monastery, Wu found the poor boy and decided to give him something to eat. Seeing how injured Morro was, Wu decided to give him a home and trained him to defend himself. Eventually, Wu started to see Morro as his own son, thus the master of wind became the first of the descendants of the Brothers.

The second of the children is the master of energy, Lloyd Montgomery, the benevolent son of Garmadon. Garmadon met Misako while out on errands, and took her in after learning her abandonment of her crazy strict parents. Eventually, they had a beautiful son—the prophesied hero that will decide the fate of the balance. Garmadon felt the need to break tradition and he decided to give his first name as his son's last. The destruction elemental quickly found out about Lloyd's destiny and had made a vow to protect and train his son for the upcoming prophecy.

The third and final child is the master of snow, Elsari Sikosu, created by Wu from his elemental powers. The original master of snow, Honoka, lived her life without creating a successor for her power, so she asked Wu to create a child to pass down her element before they faded away to oblivion. With the combined elemental powers of Wu and Honoka, they created a beautiful baby girl named Elsari. Before passing on, Honoka gave Wu the ownership of Elsari and told him to protect her at all cost.

A decade passed and five ninja joined the team that the Kamiare family started to continue protecting Ninjago.

Kai and Nya are the descendants of Ray and Maya Smith, the late masters of fire and water and former blacksmiths. Kai is a hotheaded teenager with a loyal heart. Much like Garmadon, he will protect those he cares about, putting his life on the line if need be. Nya, on the other hand, is a carefree, independent girl who stops at nothing to prove her worth in society. As one of the two female members of the team, she puts her all into everything she does. As Ray and Maya were good friends of the Kamiare family, the fallen elementals entrusted them with their children before they passed.

Jay is the son of Cliff and Lena Gordon, and the master of lightning. He is the joker on the team and a skilled inventor. When his parents died, he was adopted by Ed and Edna Walker who live in a junkyard several miles from Ninjago City. One day Jay was flying his wings that he had recently invented, only to crash land into a bulletin board. Wu saw him and recruited him to join the team.

Cole is the son of Louis and Kamara Brookstone, and the master of earth. He is both independent and strong minded, and doesn't hesitate to do the right thing. His father implored him to become a dancer just like himself upon his mother's death, but Cole refused and ran away. A few days later he was climbing on the mountains of the monastery when Wu found him and took him in.

Zane is an android. He was built by Desmond Julien, since he was unable to have children of his own. One day, an old man, Eido, the master of ice, visited their house in the snowy Birchwood Forest. He was on the verge of dying, but he was strong enough to implement his powers into Zane's system. Master Wu visited the place a few years later after Desmond's passing. Zane is now an instrumental part of the team.

However, unbeknownst to the Kamiares and the rest of the ninja team, evil has all but arisen. The Overlord was stranded on the island long enough to create two sons: Xenudah and Clouse. He died soon afterwards, but the two brothers of darkness vowed to bring their father back to life.

And it is that goal that starts the upcoming war that will decide the fate of Ninjago and all of its inhabitants.


	2. Memories

_The Great Devourer has just slithered into Ninjago City, showing no remorse as it begins to eat the pedestrians and the objects on the streets. The ninjas are just coming up as well on their vehicles, despite it being beaten up from the encounter in the junkyard. Above them is the Destiny Bounty being driven by Misako, as the others are on the ground, trying to fight the ginormous snake. A flying machine soars past the boat, belonging to the mysterious Samurai X that has been helping them against the Serpentine for a while._

 _Lloyd and Garmadon are driving the Nightcrawler the former created from his elemental powers. Garmadon is up front driving the vehicle while his son is sitting in the back, preparing to use the weapons implanted in it._

 _"Son, are these gadgets you made ready to be used?" Garmadon asks as he struggles to avoid the Devourer's large tail from crushing._

 _"Yeah!" Lloyd calls out while typing into a keyboard, programming a mechanism that shoots spikes out of the side of the car. The machinery hits the snake by the middle and the end, pinning it down. But not before it swung it's tail, causing a deep, bloody gash to be inflicted on Lloyd's left cheek._

 _"LLOYD!" Garmadon screams, all former traces of his positive mood gone. Lloyd is ALWAYS first in his mind, no matter what is going on._

 _Lloyd shivers from the injury and is trembling out of control as the poison that the snake was leaking starts to harm him. He starts to glow green, signifying that his powers are starting to heal him. And soon the pain dissipates and the corruption is prevented._

 _Garmadon lets out a sigh in relief, tears pricking his eyes. Moments afterward, he is filled with rage and vengeance. That snake could have killed his son, or worse, turned him evil!_

 _"Stay back," he orders, ready to end the Great Devourer once and for all. "It_ won't _get away. Not after what it did to you!" He grabs the sword his father gifted him before he passed on, and steps out of the car, infusing the blade with his elemental power._

 _"Father, be careful!" Lloyd calls out from the Nightcrawler._

 _Garmadon blinks back tears, turning and nods softly. "I will..." He begins walking to the serpentine, his blade glinting from the sunlight. His bangs cover his eyes, which are now a glowing purple. His teeth are clenched tight as he gets closer and closer to the creature that has caused harm to his family._

 _"First you devour my little brother, and then you try to bring harm to my own child. You are a heartless creature that only brings destruction and despair to everyone. I cannot stand you harming my family any longer!" Garmadon looks up at the heartless snake, and his bangs are pushed away to reveal the lost sanity in his eyes._

 _Lloyd watches in shock and awe as the destruction power radiates off his own father, empowering the sword. This is the second time in his entire life that he has seen his father so furious at the Serpentine, and it was recently after he was rescued from the snakes' clutches by his teammates and father._

 _The sky begins to darken from blue to a deep purple with black accents, signifying his element is starting to spread throughout the city. Thunder roars as his powers strengthen further. Lloyd jumps up in fear as this happens, having a phobia with that element since he was a child._

 _"Your time in this realm is OVER!" Garmadon performs Airjitzu to get high into the air until he was high enough to be over the Great Devourer. He aims his sword right at the serpent's weak spot, and begins to freefall to commit an act that could quite possibly scar his son for the rest of his life. And it happens. The blade pierces the scaly flesh, causing the snake to hiss and recoil in pain._

 _A dark purple light emits from where the sword struck the snake and it envelops Garmadon's vision, blinding him of his sight._

Garmadon gasped in shock as he lept up from his bed. Sweat formed on his forehead and hands, as he gripped his blanket tight in his fist. And it was then he remembered that he was not in Ninjago City, but in his own room in the new monastery. The dream he had took place a year ago. His family was safe.

Well...not everyone.

Wu had vanished since being eaten by the snake, but was still alive through escaping somehow. Garmadon could sense his element, even though it was pretty faint. He couldn't pinpoint where he was, but at least the brother knew he was still breathing. A soft sigh of relief escaped his lips instinctively.

He looked out his window and saw the sun rising. His son, nephew, and niece were up by now.

A sad smile escaped his lip as he thought about his other two younger relatives. After their father had disappeared, Garmadon took it upon himself to look after his niece and nephew until Wu was found.

Garmadon pushed his blanket aside and walked over to his closet to put on his master gi. As soon as he got dressed, he left his room and went through his house to check up on his son. He checked Lloyd's bedroom and saw that his bed was empty yet clean as well. His son must have been awake, which was normal for him since he was an early riser like him. Though since it was a little more earlier than Lloyd would normally wake up, Garmadon decided to check on his son after breakfast, just in case.

He left the house and stepped out into the morning mountain air on the house porch. Ever since his father's monastery was burned down by the Hypnobrai, the Kamiare family and the ninjas had to find a new place to live. When they were searching for a new home, they founded another monastery in the mountain that was also an abandoned village called Spinjago. It was a large area with small houses for the ninjas to live in on their own, a large base for them to hang out or take a break, and a large training room with enough space for the entire team.

His father's monastery would always live on in their memories, but Spinjago was a great place to look out most of Ninjago since it's the largest mountain in the land.

Garmadon headed into the kitchen house and a whiff of smell indicated breakfast was being made. His son was a pretty good cook like his mother and was one of the best cooks along with Zane, Nya, and Elsa. Since Misako was now out on another expedition to find Wu once again, Lloyd cooked for the family even though his father and Morro kept insisting to let them do it so he could rest longer.

Garmadon looked through the doorway and saw his son over at the stove making breakfast. Lloyd's blonde hair fell down to near his shoulder, having grown out for months. His emerald eyes were distant yet focused on making the foods in front of him. He was already in his green ninja suit, which is the new one from a month ago, which was covered up by the apron his mother gave him on his last birthday to cover it up. He only wore the protective garment whenever it's just the family, and since it was just his cousins and father in the monastery right now, it was pretty safe for Lloyd to wear it without being judged.

Lloyd didn't seem to notice his father in the dining room until Garmadon put a hand on his son's shoulder and gently squeezed it.

"You alright there?" Lloyd looked back to see that the owner of the gentle voice was his father standing behind him.

"Yeah." Lloyd gave a small smile to Garmadon, but the father noticed he was tired-looking with his puffy eyes and pale skin. Garmadon gave a soft smile, placed his hand gently on his son's cheek, and pecked a light kiss on the forehead before sitting down at the table.

A couple minutes passed before the children of Wu step into the kitchen as well. Morro was not really a morning person since his long black hair was wildly loose onto his shoulder, his grey-green eyes were covered by his wild bangs, keeping a calm reflection from it. His baggy clothes hung loose from his pale bony body, even though he was a healthy man now since he was adopted.

Elsari, on the other hand, was a complete morning person, with her snow-white hair brushed down to her mid-back, her dark blue eyes full of sparkling life, and already dressed into her ice blue ninja gi.

Lloyd gave them their breakfast and they all ate and chatted like usual. Though, Garmadon could see that his son isn't as energetic as usual, and decided to try to pull Lloyd over when he was alone. Possibly after training.

The four went outside to the outdoor obstacle course that was more advanced but also similar to the one in their old monastery. Garmadon smiled pridefully as he watched his son go train with his cousins. He closed his eyes to keep the tears at bay, remembering the vow he made a few days after Lloyd was born.

 _Garmadon lovingly held his newborn son, who was wrapped in a soft green blanket, at the base of the monastery's mountain. He watched in tears as his dear child looked at the outside world with his emerald eyes for the very first time._

 _Suddenly, heavy footsteps were heard making the father look up. In his view now was a red and black stone creature with ominous yellow-green eyes and a red helmet marching up to the two males._ _  
_ _"Sensei Garmadon, I have been looking for you," it bellowed as Garmadon tightened his hold on his son protectively._

 _"I am Kozu, the commanding Stone Warrior of the great lord of the darkness, the Overlord," the creature called out in a clearer gravelly voice._

 _"Yakunan..." Garmadon muttered the demon's true name lowly._

 _"And now, in his name, I will exact his revenge by taking away the one thing that you hold dearly: your son." Kozu pointed his stone sword at the infant who was looking at his father and giggling innocently, completely unaware of what was going on._

 _Fury and determination to protect his son roared inside of him as Garmadon growled in warning against the heartless general. "No, I won't let you touch my child!" Garmadon snarled protectively as he began to back away to the stairs that led back to the monastery. He needed to get away from that monster. He couldn't fight it without putting his son in danger of getting hurt._

 _Kozu, seeing what Garmadon was about to do, swiftly moved to the other side to prevent him from going any further. "His fate is set, Garmadon," Kozu hissed as he prepared to commit his heinous act._ _  
_ _Realizing that he would be unable to get past Kozu without an injury laid on them, Garmadon rushed to the nearest rock and put Lloyd down. The young child, now starting to sense the danger they're in, whimpered, reaching out to his father for safety._

 _"I'll be back for you soon, son. Just be quiet and out of sight._ I love you _..." Garmadon whispered as he stroked his child's blonde hair before stepping out to the fields again._

 _When Garmadon met his eyes with the Overlord's accomplice, all he could feel was fury. Anger rose toward the stone warrior, who was willing to kill an infant who was just a few days old now. Who never met his master or his army. Who couldn't even defend himself at all. But most of all, was his only son._

 _"How dare you threaten my child," Garmadon growled quietly as he began lurking to the warrior and charging up his element. "He is only a newborn. An infant. I love him since he came into the world, and I promised I would protect him from harm of any kind. Including_ you _." His power had finished charging up, and he glared at Kozu violently with glowing purple eyes._

 _"AND I WILL KEEP THAT PROMISE,_ NO MATTER WHAT! _" Garmadon screamed in tears as he launched a powerful dark beam that overpowered Kozu's indestructible armor._

 _The warrior roared in agony and defeat before being completely obliterated without a single remain of him in sight._

 _The dark elemental master fell to his knees and pants in exhaustion and relief, sweat and tears falling from his face and hitting the stony ground. He couldn't believe what just happened: he destroyed one of the stone warriors of the Overlord's indestructible army. And a_ general _, for that matter. If only his father was here to see that._

 _Garmadon was pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of loud whimpering and crying coming from behind the rock._

 _"Lloyd!" Garmadon exclaimed as he rushed to his son, picking him up from the dirt he was forced to lie in. He looked down at his child as tears formed in his eyes once again, his voice cracking as he spoke, "I'm so sorry, little one. I never meant to put you through such a thing. I hope you can ever forgive me."_

 _Garmadon caressed the baby's cheek and kissed him on the forehead before heading back up to the safety of the monastery. Lloyd had all but calmed down as he snuggled into the safety of his father's strong hold in his arms. The father gazed down at his now slumbering infant and smiled softly, tears of overwhelming relief streaming down his face._

 _'Lloyd, I vow to you that I will protect you from any kind of harm throughout your whole life. Whether it be the Overlord, the Stone Army, or even the Serpentine, I promise I will be there to keep you safe no matter the age you're in. That is how much I love you.'_

Garmadon teared up from the memory, pushing them away before going back to watching his son train with Morro and Elsari. He was filled with pride for how much Lloyd went through for the past years, but also felt apprehensive. He was scared he could lose his son, or worse. He always felt that he would _never_ be able to live with himself if anything ever happened to his dear child. He was soon consumed with the need to tell Lloyd about his heritage before anyone else.

His thoughts were interrupted by Lloyd wrapping his arms around his father's neck. "Dad...is everything alright?" Lloyd asked with concern clear in his voice. Morro and Elsari were both watching from afar, worried but not wanting to interrupt the father-son moment. They both tried to give them space by going back to train a little further away from them.

Garmadon shook his head and sighed, returning the embrace. "N-No... I love you so much... _I don't want you to leave me..._ " He held Lloyd close for a moment, stroking his soft hair as he tried to calm down.

Lloyd laid his head on the crook of his father's neck, comforting them both. "I love you too, Dad...I don't want you to leave me too."

Garmadon smiled in relief. "I'm so proud of you, Lloyd..." he breathed. "So, _so_ proud of you..." He caressed Lloyd's cheek ever so gently like a warm breeze brushing past the teen. "You've grown up so fast..." The light mood within Garmadon faded away as his fingers carefully lingered on the one permanent reminder of the Great Devourer.

The scar from the Devourer's tail was still there. It still hurt Garmadon every time he saw it. He choked back a sob, the memories flashing through his mind as clear as day. He brought Lloyd close to him once again, feeling guilt for allowing Lloyd to get injured and possibly scaring him from his powers when he destroyed the snake. This time, he was unable to hold his emotions back. His body trembled from those overwhelming emotions as he protectively embraced his son close to his chest. "I'm sorry this had to happen to you, my child..."

Lloyd knew exactly what his father was referring to. That memory haunted him as well, but not as much as his devoted father. "It's okay... I'm here now..."

Garmadon smiled, glad Lloyd wasn't bothered by the scar and memories as much as he thought he would be. A few moments passed, and he calmed down. The two of them pulled away. He took this moment to pull his son aside, taking him inside to the living room.

"I can see fear in your eyes. What's the matter?" Garmadon asked concernedly. Lloyd's eyes widened when he learned his father actually saw his depression, but sighed in defeat, knowing he was gonna have to explain sooner or later.

"You know how I've been feeling off since Uncle Wu disappeared a year ago?" Garmadon nodded, remembering how distant his son was sometimes due to his sixth sense of feeling the balance of light and darkness.

"Well, lately these weird things have been happening since then..." Lloyd began playing with his fingers in nervousness, and his father placed a hand on his shoulder, pulling him closer. Garmadon knew what he was talking about. There have been a rash increase of gangster attacks in Ninjago at night, and monsters attacking the villages at night as well.

Lloyd took a deep breath, knowing the next thing he said would be emotional, "And last night, I had a vision that felt like a nightmare. It showed a being I might be prophesied to fight in the Final Battle." Tears streamed down his cheeks as the green ninja remembered the nightmare a little too clearly. The large shadow looming over the small figure of Lloyd. The lack of light anywhere in the room. The dead bodies and abandoned buildings of Ninjago City, reflecting what would happen if he failed and let darkness win.

" _Lloyd Montgomery, my precious son...come here..._ " Garmadon softly whispered. He pulled him into a tight, protective embrace as Lloyd began to cry quietly into his father's arms. Garmadon dragged Lloyd to the couch and close to his chest, almost to the point that Lloyd would sit on his father's lap.

"Shhhh... I got you, Lloyd. Don't worry. _I love you..._ That demon will _never_ lay a finger as long as I'm around." Garmadon gently hushed as he stroked Lloyd's hair and rocked him like when he was just a toddler who would always have nightmares.

Lloyd smiled in tears, knowing his father's words were true, snuggling deeper into his father's embrace. His father promised wholeheartedly to protect him from the death-defying situations they were getting involved in. He even felt safe wrapped in his father's strong yet warm embrace like a blanket.

"Everything's alright...nothing will tear us apart, my dearest..." Garmadon stroked his son's hair lightly, whispering sweet nothings into Lloyd's ear. "You're my everything... Hold onto me..."

The two of them held each other close for a long time, not loosening their grip even the slightest. They were too content with each other's presence.

Garmadon smiled and whispered to his son's hair, "Even at the age you are now, you'll always be my little one at heart..."

Lloyd smiled back, touched by the kindhearted words of his own father. "I don't want to go..."

"I understand... It's going to be okay... _I promise..._ " He ran his fingers through Lloyd's hair. "I'll be here..."

The two remained in each other's embrace until they were interrupted by a door opening. The two turned to the sound, loosening their grip but not letting go of each other at all. Morro and Elsari were both at the doorway, with the former holding some kind of letter in his hand.

"Oh, sorry Uncle Garmadon and Lloyd. We didn't mean to interrupt your moment," Elsari apologized as she and her brother bowed in respect.

"It's quite alright, you two. What is it you want to tell us?" Garmadon asked as he very slowly let go of his son.

"Here, read this." Morro gave the note to Garmadon who gently took it from his hands.

Garmadon read the note aloud.

 _'Dear Ninja,_

 _We have just gotten word that the Sons of Darkness plan to break in and steal the Oni Mask of Vengeance later tonight. We need your help to arrest them and prevent them from taking this sacred relic. At first I thought the Devourer was the only force of evil to attack our city, but we were wrong. Please, Ninja. Help us prevent the inevitable._

 _Cyrus Borg'_

Garmadon sighed in response. "Get the others. We need to alert them of this."

Morro and Elsa nodded and left the room. Lloyd got up from the couch and moved to stand beside his father. Garmadon turned his head to see his son coming forward to him.

"What is it now, Lloyd?"

"Dad...the...the energy force..." Lloyd winced in pain and collapsed to his knees. "It's getting stronger..."

Garmadon sighed. "I fear the worst is yet to come."

"I'm scared..." Lloyd whimpered.

"Oh Lloyd... _Lloyd..._ I'm here... I'll help you through this..." Garmadon knelt beside his only son and held him against his chest once more. "It'll be alright... I'm scared for you... It hurts seeing you like this... You have no idea... I love you too immensely."

"I want to cry so badly... I'm overwhelmed..."

"Go ahead. There is no shame in that. You are only a child. You mustn't let your emotions build up so much. It will only become worse. It's okay to let them free. I should have let you cry before. Go ahead. It's alright now." Garmadon assured his son.

Lloyd collapsed into his father's arms, sobbing, shaking uncontrollably.

Garmadon sighed softly, stroking his hair. "It'll take time... I cannot help but empathize. You have been through a lot, my son, but you have endured through it all. I am so proud of you for coming this far. Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon...it is an honor to be your father. I am glad you are a part of my life." The master of destruction softly smiled and kissed Lloyd's forehead. "I love you more than words could ever express..."

Lloyd took a deep breath and calmed down. "I love you too, Father... I feel a lot better now."

Garmadon smiled. "Join your cousins. They're waiting for you."

"Yeah." Lloyd returned the expression. "Bye, Dad!"

" _Farewell, my child... Stay safe... I love you..._ "


	3. The Robbery

Night had fallen onto Ninjago City as three colorful dragons flew through the starry sky. A large green dragon led the surge while a black-green and an ice blue of the same creature followed it.

Lloyd stared out into the colorful horizon of the city, fading away from the reality of his mission. He couldn't help but feel worried for his father. What if something bad were to happen to him? What if he–

No, Lloyd couldn't go there. He needed to lead the defense team now. Especially since the others couldn't make it due to their own missions.

His thoughts were interrupted by Morro. "We're here!"

Lloyd pushed the reeling questions away as he looked up to see the tallest building of all of Ninjago City: Borg Tower. His eyes widened in awe. He hadn't been to the city for awhile, as he was too busy training with his father for the inevitable battle against the Overlord. Now that he was seeing it again, Ninjago City looked so beautiful at night.

The three ninjas' dragons dissipated as they landed onto the balcony of the tower. The wind blew against their hoods, cooling their heated faces from the extra clothing.

Lloyd gasped as the sound of the alarm reached his ears, signifying one thing.

"The mask!" Lloyd whisper-shouted as he and his cousins went to follow the source of the sound. "They've got it already!"

Staying in the shadows, the three ninjas followed the sound of the alarm while staying as quiet as possible. They then noticed another shadow soon join it, dressed like its friend but with a red mask instead.

Morro whispered, pointing at one with a green helmet, carrying something red: The Mask of Vengeance. "Guys...!"

Lloyd felt his chest sink. They failed...

No. They could still try to get it back.

"Try to catch them as quietly and fast as possible." Lloyd whispered to his cousins, who nodded in response.

Like the ninjas they were, they hid among the shadows on top of the buildings. They kept their eyes on the group in the alley, not intending to get spotted by them. Once the bikers reached the porch, Lloyd launched into a Spinjitzu attack at the blue-masked one.

"Nice masks," Elsa said as she fell in line with her brother and cousin. "You could almost pass as ninja."

As the three members of the Kamiare family prepared to attack, the green biker picked up a grappling hook and shot it at a building nearby.

"They're getting away!" Morro cried, gasping as the hook flew and attached to the nearest skyscraper.

Lloyd and Elsa were unable to focus on it as they battled against the four bikers trying to hold them back. Morro saw them struggling and activated his element to create a tornado of wind energy Spinjitzu.

"You two go! I'll try to stop them!" Morro cried out as he sucked up the bikers and began to make them dizzy and vulnerable.

"Okay!" Elsa exclaimed, turning to Lloyd, the two of them running after the green and white bikers. The two grabbed onto the rope and zip-lined after them with their gloved hands.

The four passed a monorail, where a guy looking out the window spotted them and took his phone out to record the event.

The green-masked biker got to the roof of the building first, and takes one of the katana off his back. "Wait, is he gonna...?" Lloyd asked but didn't have time to finish it when the biker sliced the rope, sending all _three_ of the sliders to the ground.

"You idiot! You don't deserve the color green at all!" Elsa screamed as she lost her grip on the rope. She couldn't believe that the leader of a gang of thieves would be willing to sacrifice his teammate against his will.

The white biker screamed in terror as Elsa struggled to create a pile of snow to cushion their fall. As much as she didn't like the thief, he didn't deserve to get hurt because of a selfish one. Unfortunately, her fear had taken over her body, and she couldn't get control of her element. She couldn't believe that this is how it would be the end of her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact of the cold ground coming up to her.

"ELSA!" The said elemental master opened her eyes to see a blur of green grab her just as she was about to crash into the decorations. She hugged her cousin out of gratitude, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Thank you, Lloyd." Elsa whispered to the green ninja's ears, so the white biker wouldn't hear the green ninja's identity. Speaking of the biker, he could still be seen falling to the ground without any support. Now without fear, Elsa summoned a snow pile underneath him just as he was about to crash.

Lloyd concentrated, summoning his Nightcrawler, Elsa jumping in shortly afterward. The white biker landed in the snowpile, and the pair of ninjas heard sirens blaring in the distance. The police were here!

"Perfect, the police can handle that guy. At least he's not harmed." Elsa smiled at Lloyd's concern for the guy, even though he was a thief.

That was the difference between those two green masked guys. While that thief was persistent and willing to do harm to civilians, including his own teammates, Lloyd was benevolent and refused to let people get harmed, no matter who they were. The two of them glanced up to see a helicopter by Borg Industries, and Morro's dragon flying down from above.

"Saw what happened! You guys okay?" Morro asked as he yelled through the wind and loud noise. Both of them agreed they weren't harmed, relieving the master of wind. Once he landed, the three of them got into the Nightcrawler, and Lloyd pursued the green biker with all three of them together.

They drove off to where that biker had run off, but they couldn't see him anywhere. Only cars and people with their faces shown.

"You don't think he came out of disguise and is pretending to be a civilian right now, is he?" Elsa asked as she looked out to Lloyd's left on the Nightcrawler. Lloyd wondered if his cousin was right, that the guy had went undercover into the crowd.

It was starting to look hopeless again, that they might not find that thief or the mask. But if there was one thing Lloyd didn't do, it's quit. Even before he learned of the phrase "Ninjas never quit," Lloyd was always too stubborn and optimistic to give up very easily.

"Maybe, but we just gotta keep looking right now. Just look for a red mask of a demon or whatever that is. It kinda makes it stand out." Even though the Day of the Dragons was getting people to wear masks as well, they were all mostly dragons since the festival _was_ about them.

Just then, Lloyd heard a thud from in front of him, and he looked ahead to see a roadblock in their way. The driving ninja hit the brake quickly before they were accused of trouble by the authority. But something caught his eyes and his vision become focused on what might have been the cause of the noise: the green biker's mask.

Before Lloyd could notify his cousins, a loud engine roar echoed through the highway from beyond the roadblock. Now fully alert, they saw a figure getting onto some kind of purple and black slim motorcycle.

And on the back of the bike was the Mask of Vengeance!

"There's the thief!" Elsa cried out just as the biker was driving off. Lloyd revved up the Nightcrawler once more and began following the motorcyclist.

They jumped over the large gap from the roadblock and start driving through a bunch of cars without crashing into them. Morro and Elsa were gripping onto the Nightcrawler while also keeping their eyes on the biker, as Lloyd was too busy making sure they weren't hitting anything. Even though Zane and Nya both told Lloyd that the car was capable to avoid crashing and damaging properties.

"Nightcrawler, can you identify that guy?" Lloyd commanded to the computer of the vehicle. The computer did an invisible scan on the biker, but only a question mark appeared on the screen.

"He or she is not in the database."

Lloyd groaned softly.

"We'll just find out more once we get a closer look on him." Morro stated upon hearing his cousin's groan.

Deciding that was good enough, Lloyd went back to concentrating on catching the biker.

The two vehicles began to sped up as the motorcyclist attempted to get away from the chase, making Lloyd increase the speed as well. He swerved from one side to the other as they attempted to win the chase while avoiding any crashes to the cars that were in their way.

The biker seemed to have enough as he turned to another roadblock, which forced the ninjas to go after him as well.

"Man, this guy is persistent, isn't he?" Morro stated as the Nightcrawler sped to catch up.

"Heh yeah!" Lloyd chuckled softly. "It's getting really hard to catch him! We gotta get that mask back and return it! Ninjago is probably gonna be doomed if that doesn't happen!"

"You can say that again," Elsa giggled lightly.

"Ninjago is probably gonna be doomed if _that_ doesn't happen! There! I said it!" Morro rolled his eyes at the younger two's playful antics came up once more, but stayed silent since it relieved some stress from him and his family. Which he needed at the moment, not that he won't admit.

Eventually, their chase began to become more intense. Since there are no more cars, the biker could pull tricks to get away. He tried using tricks to get off the road and escape with the mask, but Morro and Elsa used their elements to prevent that.

It felt like an hour of preventing the biker from escaping, and they lost sight of where they were until the area had become completely dark. The only thing keeping them from running into any obstacles was the AI mechanism programmed into the vehicle that allowed it to quickly navigate the area. Lloyd found a button on the dashboard that activated the light. He pressed it and—

"THERE'S A WALL!" Morro cried out just as the light turned on and reflected off the surface of the material.

Lloyd's eyes widened. "Ohh shoot!" He stomped on the brake as hard as he could, and all the three braced for possible impact. But luckily, it didn't happen as the car stopped in the nick of time.

All three of the ninjas let out a sigh of relief they didn't realized they were holding. Once they had calmed down, they looked around to see that they were no longer in the lively streets of Ninjago City, but an abandoned, broken-down warehouse area.

"Well, that was fun..." Lloyd breathed out sarcastically as he finally began to get his nerves straight.

"Yeah, but where's that thief?" Elsa asked once she became more aware of her surrounding. And the snow master was right. The biker was nowhere in their sight.

Just as they were going to believe that the thief had actually gotten away for real this time, an engine roar was heard right behind them. Morro, being the one closest to the top, and _actually paying attention_ , glanced back to see the biker heading straight for them.

"Guys, behind you!" Morro cried out, getting Lloyd's and Elsa's full attention. Lloyd immediately swerved the car to face the motorcyclist, and prepared to drive right into him.

With the light now pointed at the thief, the ninjas finally had a clear view of him. He was completely dressed from head-to-toe in black and red leather clothing, with a black helmet covering its entire head. But what horrified them the most was his eyes. They were glowing white slits that gave off a disturbing aura from its glare that made all three of them shiver in fear.

The biker glared at the ninjas with annoyance written all over it, clearly tired of failing to escape from them for too long. But, for some reason, it seemed to be staring more directly at Lloyd.

His body began to feel cold as he looked directly into the biker's eyes. Though they looked to be emotionless, Lloyd could sense the hatred coming off of him. At first, Lloyd thought that it was because of the chase they had been doing all night. And yet, it felt like it was more personal than that. But _why_? He just couldn't understand.

Suddenly, the biker revved his motorcycle up and began to charge right at the car, distracting Lloyd from his swirling thoughts.

"Whoa, what is he doing?!" Elsa shrieked as she jumped into her brother's arms fearfully.

Morro protectively held his little sister close to him as Lloyd tried to devise a plan to avoid the now insane biker. Remembering a safety protocol for incoming head crashes, Lloyd programmed the Nightcrawler to create a protective shield around the front and started up the car as well.

"Lloyd, what are you doing?" Morro asked skeptically as he tightened his hold on Elsa.

"Guys, I need you to brace yourselves and trust me on this. _Got it?_ " Lloyd used a tone that told the siblings to listen to him _without_ questions.

Lloyd floored the accelerator pedal and began to drive right to the speeding motorcycle. He just hoped that the armor would bounce the biker off to the side, _without too many injuries_ , and hopefully he would finally give up and end the chase for good.

But just as they were going to collide and end it all, the bike suddenly propped up two long metal stick-like mechanisms to the side with red spikes at the bottom. And the next thing they knew, the biker leaned his motorcycle forward, causing himself to get launched into the air.

When the biker got to the high point of its launch, he got out of his bike and started free-falling down to the river right by them. The three ninjas got out of the car and followed the falling biker as they see a boat come to view. The guy's back revealed a green parachute as well, and opened it to land on the boat with no damage to the mask in his hand. There was a symbol on the center, and what was pictured made Lloyd's throat tighten and his heart plummet: Garmadon's evil form with the Ninjagian letters for "S.O.G." right underneath.

The energy elemental recalled this form from a dream he had a few days back, when his own father attacked Ninjago and his own friends and family. With a murmur of "Father...", his eyes teared up for a moment as the biker left his peripheral vision and escaped into the sewer tunnel down below. The young ninja couldn't understand why _his dad_ was on someone's parachute. Not to mention a villain!

"Okay, was it me or did that guy look like Uncle Garmadon?" Elsa asked after a few seconds of silence.

" _It was him._ " Lloyd quietly answered for his cousin, feeling horrified and confused of what he just saw. The tears fell down to his cheeks as the green ninja struggled not to cry in front of his family.

Strong arms instantly wrapped around him, and Lloyd recognized them as his cousin, Morro. As non-nonsensical and distant as he was, he was also very supportive and sympathetic when it came to family issues. And this was one of those times.

"Don't worry, Lloyd. We're going to figure this out." Morro whispered soothingly as his cousin shamelessly cried into his shoulder. While they may have been cousins, Morro tended to act more like an older brother to Lloyd, or even a second father figure whenever Garmadon wasn't around.

Same went for Elsa as she rubbed Lloyd's shaking shoulders while giving him a sympathetic look. Even though she was born from separate parents, Elsa acted like a little sister to Lloyd.

"It's time to get the team back." Lloyd spoke in a low but strong voice laced with determination.

He was going to solve this mystery, and get to the bottom of this confusion.


	4. Picking up the Pieces

After Lloyd had calmed down and alerted the other ninja and his father to come, the three ninjas decided to return back to Borg Tower and tell Cyrus the bad news. He felt like he had failed the mission, but his cousins assured him that they didn't.

"It's true, Lloyd. After you and Elsa went after their leader, the guards came over and arrested his comrades. So now we can get information out of them." Morro patted his leader's back as they saw the tower come into view around the corner.

"Yeah, and we caught that white guy as well, _and_ we saved his life, so he might be willing to give us some kind of information for us." Elsa gushed while Lloyd went to park the Nightcrawler in the parking lot. Thank goodness they had a private area for their car so no one could bother it and get hurt.

His cousins were right; the mission wasn't completely a failure.

The three headed on over to the facility while Lloyd began to ponder over what he saw when that thief got away. Why in the name of his grandfather would his own father be a symbol to a criminal organization? Garmadon was the most benevolent person Lloyd had ever known, and the best father he could ever ask for. There was no way in a million years he would ever be a part of something so violent!

"Lloyd," a familiar voice called when the team got inside, bringing Lloyd out of his thoughts. It belonged to the said master, Garmadon. With how long it took them, he was worried out of his mind about his son, nephew, and niece.

" _D-Dad!_ " The young energy ninja sprinted into the older man's arms, quietly sobbing in relief. Lloyd was glad that it was not the demon he saw just a while ago, and instead his beloved father who loved him with all his heart.

"Shh...it's alright…" Garmadon consoled, his voice soft and reassuring. "I'm here…" He glanced up to his brother's children, his eyes filled with concern and confusion. "Morro, Elsari, what's going on?"

The two siblings gave a quick glance at each other before turning back to their uncle.

"We were able to capture all of the thieves except for their leader. He got away," Morro explained.

"This whole time he put us in a _very_ wild goose chase on the streets, and when we thought we finally got him, he escaped onto a riverboat!" Elsa exclaimed, still frustrated about that biker's tricks. Normally it was her who would used clever wits like that, but he completely outdid it.

"Wait...then why is Lloyd so upset? I don't understand." Garmadon asked as he stroked his distressed child's hair.

Elsa took out a BorgPhone from her suit and scrolled through the images app until she found the picture she took earlier of the parachute's symbol.

"Because of this…" Elsa quietly muttered as she showed the picture to Garmadon.

The father's throat closed as he tightened his hold on his son. The symbol revealed exactly what was upsetting Lloyd, an evil version of Garmadon's face. His expression was twisted into a dark scowl with clenched teeth, revealing snake-like fangs among them. On top of his head was an ornamental samurai helmet with snake statues coiling around it. He looked like a monster.

Garmadon shook his head in disbelief. "I-I refused to let that happen to myself… Why in my father's name would they see me as a villain?" The destruction elemental growled as he protectively held his child close to his chest.

"I don't know…" Lloyd whispered through tears. "I felt the same way…" He slowly pulled away as he wiped the tears off his face. His father never took his arms off his son.

"I'm sorry that had to happen to you, my child…" Garmadon whispered, caressing Lloyd's tear-ridden face. "We'll figure this out, alright?"

Lloyd nodded softly, embracing his father once again. "I-I love you s-so much…"

Garmadon smiled in return, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. "I couldn't agree more…"

The two were very content in each other's presence, so Morro and Elsa decided to go ahead and check on Cyrus Borg while they let them have their moment. The father and son could catch up later. They entered the building, heading over to what remained of the crime scene: a small empty pedestal with still-flashing lasers. It used to be in a safe behind a painting of the prestigious inventor, but the criminals forgot to put it back.

Two young men were standing right by the scene of the crime. Well...one was sitting in a wheelchair actually, his hair neatly brushed back. He was wearing a grey sweater and darker grey pants. The other man was in intricate green and golden robes, his black hair slicked back in spikes and his grey mustache and stubble all over the bottom of his face.

"Cyrus Borg," Elsari politely interrupted the two men's conversation. "We're really sorry, but we weren't able to get the mask back from the gang's leader." Elsa bowed her head in shame, with her big brother falling suit. If Lloyd was here, he would be doing a little more than what they were doing.

Cyrus just gave a friendly smile to the two elemental siblings. "It's alright, Elsari. I heard about what happened on the streets. I'm more relieved that you guys aren't harmed." His smile then fell into a frown when he saw that someone is missing. "But where's your leader, Lloyd?"

Morro sighed, knowing his next few words were going to shock him. "That's the thing. He's upset, and his father is comforting him down at the lobby. By the looks of it, those criminals somehow want something to do with our uncle, Garmadon, being some kind of evil symbol, not that he is right now nor would he ever will be."

"By gosh…!" Cyrus gasped in shock. He had heard many great things about Garmadon. From leading the Elemental Masters against the Serpentine to annihilating the Great Devourer, the master of destruction had created a legacy built to last for centuries. The idea of Garmadon being an evil demon seemed practically impossible for everyone who knew him.

Speaking of the master, Cyrus looked behind the two to see the master and his son walking over to them. Both their eyes were a little puffy from crying, since they were both such emotional people.

"Are you alright?" the handicapped inventor asked them.

"Not exactly, but we're holding up." Garmadon bowed in respect. Lloyd followed suit, blushing in embarrassment from what he might have caused. From the pat on the back he got from his father, he knew that everything was all good.

"That is good to hear. But right now, I have someone with me that I like you four to meet." Cyrus gestured over the man he was talking to, inviting him over to the conversation. "This is Hutchins, Master-At-Arms and Counsel to the Royal Family," The four ninjas gaped in shock that an important member of the Royal Guards was in the same room as them.

When he looked at each of the ninja, his eyes suddenly lingered on Lloyd a little longer. There was something off about how Hutchins was gazing at him. It seemed...inhuman and cold. The way he was looking at Lloyd made him felt ill and dirty.

Garmadon sensed the uneasiness coming from Lloyd, and wrapped an arm around his child while giving a protective glare against Hutchins, who seemed unfazed with it.

"Excuse me on my intrusion. As you may have heard, I am Hutchins, an associate to the Royal Family of Ninjago." Morro and Elsa snapped out of their shock while Garmadon and Lloyd began to relax slowly, and all bowed in respect to him.

"The honor is all ours, Hutchins." Lloyd answered for his family.

"Indeed." Hutchins muttered darkly as he leered at Lloyd and Garmadon once more, but quickly turned it back into a solemn look from when they first saw him.

"I was here to check on the Mask of Vengeance when I heard it was going to be robbed, but I guess I had come too late." Hutchins explained with a sad tone that contrasted how void it was.

"Yes, we are deeply sorry if failing to get that mask back had failed you." Lloyd apologized as he and his cousins bowed in shame. Garmadon gave them sympathetic looks when he saw the distress in their posture, but then turned his look back to stern when he looked back.

"Well, I appreciate the admittance on your incompetence in stopping the robbery," Garmadon nearly lost his temper when Hutchins said that, "But I will accept your apology. Especially since I have been requested to ask you a favor." The three ninjas immediately straightened up in surprise that a royal society wanted something from them.

"Tomorrow at noon, the Emperor is giving a speech to the public at the palace, and we fear the Sons of Darkness will try to steal our treasure, the Mask of Deception, while it is happening." The group gasped in shock at what they were hearing.

"Wait, are you asking us to guard a mask that is like the one that was _just_ stolen a while ago?" Elsa asked in questioning, still shocked about the request they are being asked about.

"Yes. There are actually only three in existence. The third one, I do not know the location of unfortunately." Hutchin's eyes turned dark as the next thing he said chilled them to the bone, "And if they _ever_ get all three masks in one place, a dark end will come to all of Ninjago."

Garmadon felt an unsettling aura around the man as he spoke. It almost sounded like he _wanted_ the third mask to be found. Lloyd looked over to his father uneasily, who, in response, protectively wrapped an arm around him. _I would do ANYTHING to protect you, my child… I don't want to ever lose you… Please, Lloyd…DON'T leave me… I love you, son...more than anything..._

Garmadon's thoughts were interrupted by Hutchin's voice, "Which is why I need all of the ninjas to come the speech tomorrow and protect the royal family _and_ the treasure."

The master frowned at the thought of trusting this man, but unfortunately, this was about the Royal Family's safety. Garmadon ran a slightly trembling hand through Lloyd's hair. The master of energy looked up at his parent, hugging him tightly. Garmadon softly whispered, "It'll be alright… I swore to protect you, and I'll keep my word… "

"Thanks…" Lloyd whispered in reply.

"Of course…"

Lloyd slowly let go of his father and turned to Hutchins, whose face was neutral over the small exchange. He gave a determined smile. "We'll do it, sir."

* * *

An hour later, the Kamiare family were now in an apartment Cyrus generously gave them for the night. Morro and Elsa decided to sleep in their own bedrooms while Garmadon would sleep with Lloyd, just in case he had another nightmare.

"You ready to sleep, son?" Garmadon asked once they were changed into their pjs and had brushed their teeth.

"F-Father…" Lloyd stuttered as he played with the blanket with his fingers.

"Yes? What's the matter?" The destruction elemental's voice was laced with concern for his only child. He wrapped his arms around Lloyd in a protective manner, and pulled him into his lap.

Lloyd was shaking and uneasily whimpering. "I-I don't want you to turn evil…" he cried into his father's arms. " _AAAAAGGHHHH!_ " Memories of the nightmare of that very demon comes back into his mind. His heart was practically breaking at the thought that such a benevolent person could end up as a heartless villain.

"Shhh… Lloyd...Lloyd… I'm here… Please...calm down…" Garmadon ran a hand through his soft blonde hair, stroking it continuously. "It breaks my heart to see you like this…" It was then that his emotions got the better of him. Tears fell from his eyes and ran down his cheeks.

"I don't understand…" he quietly sobbed. "It feels as if destiny hates us… I don't want to turn evil either...I don't want to harm anyone, _especially you_ …" The tears now hit his son's hair, making Lloyd respond by wrapping his arms around Garmadon tighter. "It hurts so much, Lloyd…"

"Don't be evil... _please, father…_ " Lloyd whimpered, struggling to keep his tears from falling. He failed and they rolled down his reddened cheeks.

"I won't son... _I would never be…_ " Garmadon softly whispered as he kissed his son on the top of his head. He rocked his child ever so gently, whispering soothing words to Lloyd's ears to calm him.

Eventually, both their crying started to subside, and exhaustion began to reach their minds. Lloyd was the first one to close his eyes as he laid his head against his father's strong chest. Garmadon smiled as he tenderly gazed down at his only son, relieved that he was safe.

Garmadon picked his child up as carefully as he could and placed him gently onto the bed. He grabbed a fuzzy blanket from the side and draped it around Lloyd. He smiled as he saw his son snuggle deeper into the softness he was wrapped in.

"I'm here…" Garmadon consoled as he settled down next to his son, wrapping an arm around him. "You'll be alright…"

* * *

A buzzing noise woke Morro up from his dreamless sleep. He groaned in frustration, as he never liked waking up so early. He looked at the clock on the bed stand, and nearly made another sound when he saw he only slept for two hours.

He turned to where the source of the sound was coming from: his phone in his bag he left on the floor. Guess he was so exhausted that he forgot to put his stuff away. He went over to it and dug around it. He'd look through it and saw he had gotten a text message from Kai.

 _'Zane looked it up and he says it's the symbol for the Sons of Garmadon.'_

 _Wait…Sons of Garmadon? I thought they were called the Sons of Darkness._ Morro thought to himself in confusion. He texted those words back in reply.

 _'I honestly have no idea. We're coming over now'_

'Great! See you later'

 _'See ya!'_

Morro sighed stressfully, wondering about one question that was taunting him right now.

' _What are Lloyd and Garmadon gonna say about this?'_


	5. Back Together

Morning had come hours later as the sun began rising from the horizon. Garmadon groggily opened his eyes, and he gazed down at his son who was sleeping peacefully. He smiled sadly as he remembered waking up to Lloyd going through a nightmare in the middle of the night.

Garmadon woke up to his son whimpering and rolling around on his side of the bed. He had to wrap a tight hold on Lloyd before he fell off the bed and hurt himself.

He couldn't believe Lloyd had to struggle with those deeply intense dreams all by himself for the past few weeks.

Garmadon spoke softly, " _Watashi no shin'ainaru, amai kodomo... Watashi wa hontōni nani mo watashitachi ni okoru koto o nozonde inai... Watashi wa chōdo anata ga saru koto o nozonde inai..._ " (My dear, sweet child... I really don't want anything to happen to us... I just don't want you to leave...)

Lloyd smiled lovingly at those words. He felt the same way. He didn't want to separate from his father anytime soon. A minute passed and he awoke with a yawn.

"Good morning, son," Garmadon spoke in a comforting voice as he stroked his child's soft hair.

Lloyd smiled, greatly relaxed by his father's touch and voice. He looked up to his father's eyes with his own sparkling emerald ones. "Hi, father!"

Garmadon couldn't hold back a grin, glad to see his son smiling once more. He never liked seeing Lloyd down or depressed at all or ever. It made the father feel so bad for him, and made him want to do anything to make his son happy. "You alright there?"

"Y-Yeah..." Lloyd stuttered as he blushed in embarrassment. Garmadon stroked his son's cheek in response to it.

"Son, there's nothing shameful about crying. You had a really rough night. I'm just glad you let it out, or it would have become worse." He felt his chest clench up in paternal love as he tightened his arms around his son. "I absolutely adore you..."

Lloyd let tears fall in relief that they were together. "I'm so glad you're here..."

Garmadon nodded softly. "As am I. I never want to hurt you...not in any way..."

Lloyd buried his face into his father's chest and allowed his sobs to strengthen.

"Shh...I got you, Lloyd. Don't worry...there's no need to be scared... I'll protect you." Garmadon gently hushed as he rubbed his son's back in small circles, laying his head on top of Lloyd's.

A couple moments later, Lloyd eventually calmed down and slowly let go of his father's pj shirt. "S-sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"You _never_ have to apologize for being emotional, son. That's one of the things I love about you." Garmadon assured as he stroked his son's blonde hair. "You are compassionate...you care so deeply for those who mean a lot to you. I understand your concern but you should accept who you are. You are just so special..." He choked back a soft sob. "I love you, Lloyd Montgomery... _so much... More than words could ever express..._ "

"Me too, father..." Lloyd whimpered as he snuggled deeper into his father's chest. He felt content in father's hold. Being the green ninja always made Lloyd feel overwhelmed and vulnerable, considering his responsibility of having to be a brave hero for all of Ninjago. But the moment he was in his father's arms, he felt protected. Like nothing was ever going to seperate them again.

Garmadon pressed a loving kiss on his son's forehead, making him smile through tears.

"Oh, son..." Garmadon beamed down at his child, not wanting to let go of him ever. "I'm here... I won't leave..."

The two were pulled out of their moment when Lloyd got a text message on his phone. The ninja grabbed it from the bed stand. He checked it and saw that it was Kai.

 _'We're here.'_

"Kai and the others are here." Lloyd weakly told his father, blinking back the tears that had fallen.

Garmadon gently stroked the tears off his son's cheeks, giving him a comforting smile. "Shall we?"

Lloyd nodded, brushing the last of his tears and sitting up from his bed. He went into the bathroom to change, while Garmadon changed by the bed. Once the two were dressed into their respective gis, they went to check on Morro and Elsari in their rooms.

When they stepped out of their room, they saw the said siblings had come out, wearing their ninja gis as well. Though, the two noticed that Morro looked a little paler than usual. He was gripping his BorgPad tightly, looking really nervous, which was weird considering how Morro would always act aloof and calm all the time.

Garmadon sighed when he saw Morro's condition. "Are you alright?"

The wind master jumped at his uncle's voice and turned to the father-son duo. With a trembling voice he explained, "I'll explain later when we meet up with the others. With what I'm gonna tell you, I don't think you two would want a repeat of the news."

While Lloyd wanted to know what was bothering his cousin, he decided to respect Morro's wish and wait a little longer.

Suddenly, a buzz from the intercom was heard from the door. Lloyd went over and answered the machine. "Hello?"

"Ah, Lloyd. Glad you're up. I have Hutchins with me, and we need to discuss something urgent right now." Lloyd tensed since he knew he already had to go meet up with his friends downstairs.

"You three go. I'll go talk with Borg and his guest." Garmadon's tone went tense when he indirectly mentioned Hutchins, but it was ignored when he patted his son's back and gave a reassuring smile.

Garmadon then headed out the door of the apartment, before Lloyd turned to his cousins with a smile.

"Well then, let's unite the team once again."

* * *

In the lobby of the apartment, five colorful people were waiting around: Kai, the master of fire, in a red gi; Nya, the master of water, in a light blue gi; Cole, the master of earth, in a black gi; Jay, the master of lightning in a dark blue gi, and Zane, the master of ice, in a white gi.

They no longer had to wait around as the three children of the Kamiare family came down the stairs.

"Hey guys!" Kai called as he gave a fist bump to Lloyd. "You're late!" Lloyd blushed a little, wondering if his meltdown caused that to happen.

"Well technically, we _were_ up really late chasing after those criminals out on the streets." Morro defended his cousin, giving a slight glare at Kai. Lloyd and Elsa rolled their eyes at how the master of wind was not getting that Kai was just teasing like he always would.

"Technically, Kai and I were late too, if it's any consolation." Zane pointed out as Kai gave an annoyed expression on his face. Lloyd now can't help but grin from the silly antics they're all in again. He sure missed it.

"Well, thanks for meeting us here. It's been a while since we all met under one place." The five started snickering a little bit as Lloyd spoke, making the energy master confused. "What?"

"Are we gonna talk about it?" Jay asked as he wrapped an arm around Cole and Nya's shoulders on either side.

"Talk about what?" Lloyd innocently asked in confusion. Elsa and Morro both bit their lips to keep from laughing out loud about what the topic was.

"You're voice," Cole finally pointed out. "It's..."

"Lower." Zane finished for his rocky friend.

Lloyd blushed at the topic, remembering discussing that topic already with his father. He ended up getting the 'talk,' and it was not comfortable for either of them.

"I already talked that out with my dad." Lloyd pointed out what he thought, hoping that it'll be enough to divert away from the topic.

Nya seemed to saw Lloyd's uncomfortableness as she lightly punched the three guys. "Oh, leave him alone."

 _'Thank you so much, Nya.'_ Lloyd praisedly thanked the master of water in his mind, glad that the awkwardness was out of the way.

Footsteps were heard from the steps behind the three relatives, and all the ninjas turned to see the adults descending from it. Or more specifically, Garmadon and Hutchins walking down the steps while carrying Cyrus and his wheelchair respectively.

Despite the two working together on a simple task, the ninjas could sense the tensions coming from the two movable adults. Though most of them were confused about the dense aura around them, Lloyd noticed the strained look on his father's face. The son recognized that look as a straight face after an argument with someone, which he had only seen when Garmadon sometimes fought with his polar-opposite brother or the rare occurrence with his wife.

Once the three men were on the same level as the teenagers, Garmadon and Hutchins set Cyrus up onto his wheelchair while ignoring each other like they weren't there. Eventually, they were done and Cyrus wheeled over to greet the ninjas.

"Hello, ninja. For those of you who haven't met me, my name is Cyrus Borg." Cyrus greeted with a friendly smile. The five ninja bowed in greeting to the disabled man, with Jay having to hold back his excitement considering he is a big fan of the inventor.

Hutchins came up to the gang, his face now relaxing more. "And my name is Hutchins, Master-At-Arms and Counsel to the Royal Family." Like last night, the five ninjas were immediately shocked that a member of the royal society was in their presence.

Cyrus decided to continue the conversation as he wheeled over to the masks displayed on one of the walls. "As you may have heard last night, the Sons of Darkness stole a powerful relic that we had received a while ago. That relic is a mask known as the Oni Mask of Vengeance." For a split second, Garmadon's eyes glow a dark purple with worry and fear. No one saw that flash, but Lloyd noticed his father looking tense before turning back to the conversation.

Hutchins let himself into the discussion and began to pace around the room. "The Oni mask that was recently discovered and stolen is one of only three masks in existence."

"Whoa, whoa, I'm confused. How is it that there are three masks, when you just said it was the only mask?" Jay butts in. The others looked with blank expressions on their faces, used to Jay's quirkiness and excessive talking.

"Not 'only.' ' _Oni_.'" Nya explained to her boyfriend.

"The Oni are said to be powerful beings. Demons that predate Ninjago." Lloyd noticed his father tensing as the gang talked about the Oni. He didn't know why his father is distressed, but he gave Garmadon an assuring glance to soothe him.

"Each mask embodies the powers of the original Oni warriors." Hutchins continued as he observed a random yet normal mask. "If they are ever united, whomever owns them, will wield tremendous powers." Lloyd and Garmadon both noticed that Hutchins's tone and expression had darkened as he explained the eventual outcome of the masks' powers.

"The royal family are very private people, and they always keep to themselves in the royal palace, as they do it for the safety of Ninjago." Hutchins explained as his face turned normal once more. It was starting to scare the duo now.

"And let me guess, they have an Oni mask too?" Cole spoke up, putting the pieces together.

"Two? Now there's two?" Jay jumped in once more. Nya covered his mouth while Morro and Lloyd rolled their eyes in annoyance and Garmadon facepalmed. Hutchins, once again, ignored the blue ninja's antics.

"Yes, our palace holds the Mask of Deception, and we fear that the Sons of Darkness will try to steal it while the Emperor is delivering a speech later today to the public. We ask for your protection of this sacred artifact, as we fear the group could strike and steal it," Hutchins explained. The ninjas all glanced at each other, and then turned to their current master.

Garmadon sighed, knowing what he would have to say. As much as he was suspicious of Hutchins, the Royal Family's safety was on the line. And if the masks were united, then all of Ninjago would be too.

"About the Sons of Darkness," Morro spoke up, interrupting Garmadon's thought, "I discovered something about the symbol we saw last night." He took out his BorgPad and searched online before revealing the symbol from last night. Cole, Jay, and Nya are shocked, as they hadn't seen the symbol, while Lloyd and Garmadon both looked uncomfortable seeing it.

"I showed it to Kai and Zane last night, and they identified what it represents." Morro bit his lip and became nervous about how to break the news.

Zane spoke up, stating the news himself. "We discovered that it is a faction within the large organization: the Sons of Garmadon, a mysterious criminal syndicate that's growing within the streets of Ninjago City."

At the name of his father, Lloyd paled and latched onto the destruction elemental's hand tightly. This was becoming too much for him. His father would never do such things.

Garmadon, in response, wrapped an arm around Lloyd's shoulders and held his child close. The sensei was trying his hardest to not cry—to stay strong—it was extremely difficult. Him? As a villain? It seemed completely impossible for everyone who knew him.

But what struck him the most was the fact that they were calling themselves his _sons_. He only has _one_ son, and that was, and forever will be, Lloyd. He choked back a sob. He just could not understand why _everything and everyone_ seemed to be targeting him and his family.

Morro's words shook the father and son out of their thoughts: "This group are known to be notorious thieves and have never failed any of their robberies."

"Well, that might explain who those criminals that stole the mask last night were." Elsa pointed out.

"No kidding." Morro muttered as he put his pad away.

It took a couple more seconds to pass before Lloyd pulled away from his father and turned to Hutchins, fully calmed once more. "It would be our honor, Hutchins. Just let us know where and when."

"Good, just keep a low profile so we won't rally up the crowd. The last thing we need is a full-out panic and ruining the speech." Hutchins gave a stern glare, like he was seeing the ninjas as incompetent teenagers. Though he only got one of those words right.

"We are ninjas," Zane spoke up, switching from his titanium form to his human form, "It's what we do."

The ninjas all went to prepare to head out while the two men went back to their regular business.

Lloyd and his father took this opportunity to spend a moment alone.

"I-It's _always_ us...! T-The hits just keep coming..." Lloyd sobbed while holding his father close.

"I know... But I'll protect you... I promised to from the very beginning... Hold on... _Just hold on..._ "Garmadon stroked his son's hair and rocked him back and forth lightly. "You're with me now... _it's going to be alright..._ "

Lloyd continued to cry, even though he was trying to calm down. His father just continued holding him and whispering gentle words into Lloyd's ears.

"I won't leave your side... _Not now...not ever..._ I'd _never_ leave you... " Garmadon whispered hugging his son tight "...I love you... Never forget that..." he emotionally whispered. "You are so special to me... My dear, sweet, beloved child... I don't want for us to be torn apart... I don't want anything to happen to us... Nothing will keep us apart... Nothing at all..." Garmadon whispered to his son, rocking him gently, carefully.

Lloyd smiled softly as he gazed up into his father's purple eyes. "I love you so much... I'm glad that you're my father... I just don't want to leave you..."

"Neither do I... And those crooks will _never_ be my children... You are my one and only child, Lloyd, and you always will be..."

Lloyd relaxed greatly from Garmadon's gentle words and the relief that his father only wants him as his son. Those criminals were really delusional to think his father would be theirs.

Garmadon held his child to his chest and laid his head on top of his son's, tears of overwhelming emotions tracking down his face. "Nothing will _ever_ change that. I will _always_ love you, my child."


	6. A Royal Encounter

The sun beamed down onto the large red-and-black palace and the large crowd gathered in the front steps. Police cars are creating a barrier to keep any extra pedestrians away from the gate. Many news reporters had their cameras and microphones out, trying to catch the speech on video for coverage.

On the top step that was acting like a stage at the moment were none other than the royal family. The three were all dressed in green formal attire that represented their status, and all of them had white hair that showed more beauty than age.

"My family has kept a private life. We aren't interested in meddling with current affairs, but as crime has risen, so has our concerns. So it is time we step out of the shadow and into the light," the emperor spoke up onto the podium and gave a wave to the crowd, exciting them.

As the emperor continued his speech, the whole ninja team, with Sensei Garmadon included, are all keeping an eye out for the Sons of Garmadon. Lloyd and Morro were both above the gate, observing the crowd from the sky. Kai, Zane, Cole, and Jay were on either of the walls surrounding the front, looking out in different directions. And Nya and Elsa were undercover as civilians. Garmadon was on one side of the stage, keeping a closer eye on the royal family.

Nya wandered through the crowd, wearing a leather jacket over a blue shirt with white stripes. She was complaining to the boys on the roof about this mission, or more specifically, the royal family. "I don't like this one bit. If the royal family like their privacy, why give such a public speech?"

"I think it's nice. They're reaching out to the people." Jay argued back.

"Why all the hate, sis? You just don't like getting all gussied up?" Kai pointed out as he knew his sister more than anyone else in the team.

"All the gold and glitter are just for show. They don't have real power. They're just figureheads." Nya complained, just as she nearly bumped into Elsa. Unlike the water ninja, the master of snow was wearing an ice blue dress with a white cardigan over it.

"Even though they don't have political power, they have an important status in representing Ninjago's culture." Elsa explained, remembering talking about it with Garmadon.

"Well, what's their purpose for their privacy anyway?" Nya questioned with frustration in her voice.

"Their purpose is to be protected, as do all of our traditions." Zane answered to Nya. His scanner then landed on Lloyd, who was on the opposite side of his father on the stage. He then noticed that Lloyd was staring at something. "I believe Lloyd has spotted something of interest."

Lloyd was staring at the princess of the royal family. He was keeping an eye on the emperor and empress, and the front of the crowd, but he caught the younger royal glancing at him before turning back to her father. He couldn't help but feel mesmerized with her beauty and the aura she was giving off.

"Looks like he's got an eye for the princess..." Kai teased with a chuckle.

"I guess green _is_ her favorite color." Jay pointed out the princess's attire.

"I'm so proud of you, my son. You have grown so much." Garmadon cooed softly while giving a teasing smile at his child.

Lloyd rolled his eyes while blushing in embarrassment, more so on his father's comment. "Daaad! It is _nothing_ like that!"

"Yeah guys, stop messin' with him!" Morro softly groaned and defended his cousin. "You're getting us _all_ distracted!"

"Plus, you... _do_ know I can hear you, right?" Lloyd reminded his team. Having enough of the conversation and teasing, the master of energy added, "The emperor's almost finished. Let's just do our job."

"...and always stay united!" the emperor proclaimed, causing cheers and applause to erupt from the watching crowd.

The green ninja suddenly spotted someone covered in shadow walking through the crowd. "Be on the lookout."

Lloyd's eyes caught sight of a blue balloon, having been let go into the sky as the praising continued. As it turned around, it revealed exactly what the ninjas were looking for: the Sons of Garmadon symbol.

Noticing this, Lloyd leapt out from his hiding place while ignoring the ache in his heart. "Guys, I see a–" His words were interrupted by a loud crackling noise. Lloyd immediately tackled the princess and empress to the floor while Garmadon did the same with the emperor.

"Is the threat clear?!" Garmadon asked as the sound ceased. He got up from his position, helping the emperor to his feet. Lloyd did the same with the two ladies. He averted his eyes while blushing again when the princess innocently smiled at him and fluttered her own blue eyes. He could already tell his father was teasingly smiling at him for the reaction, groaning inwardly for it.

Nya didn't seem to notice anything after that. She turned toward where she heard the sound and spotted the source. "Huh, firecrackers," she shrugged. "False alarm."

As the ninjas and their master met back up with each other, Hutchins stepped forward to address them. "You protected the royal family. You have their gratitude," he told them. "You are invited to be their guests in the palace."

Jay chuckled in surprise. "Heh, no one _ever_ gets invited into the palace. Are you sure they mean us?"

"I think so." Elsa smiled.

Nya, on the other hand, was still unimpressed. "It's just a palace. Once you've seen one, you've seen 'em all."

Lloyd turned to face the Master-At-Arms as Garmadon put a reassuring hand on his son's shoulder. Once his father let go, the green ninja bowed once again in respect to Hutchins and replied, "We'd be honored."

* * *

Later, when night had fallen into Ninjago, the ninjas and the Kamiare Family had arrived at the double-door to the inside of the palace. Once they were all together, Hutchins opened the gate and greeted them.

"Welcome to the Royal Palace. Also known as the Palace of Secrets." Hutchins explained as the ninjas entered.

"Ooh, why do they call it the Palace of Secrets?" Kai asked excitedly.

Lloyd rolled his eyes in annoyance, even though he was curious himself. But he decided to withdraw it to himself since his father raised him to be a man of respect.

"Well, if I were to tell you that, it wouldn't be a secret now, would it?" Hutchins pointed out as he closed the door.

The team all gaped in shock at how big and ornate the interior of the palace was. Fancy lanterns were hung on the brown ceiling. Embellished flooring was underneath the ninjas' feet, so clean that it made them hope they wouldn't stain it. Many decorations were displayed all over the wall, covering the red and brown walls.

"Woah..." Lloyd breathed as he looked at the symbols of Ninjago banners hanging from the ceiling.

"Indeed..." Garmadon stated as he observed the room, a guiding hand on his son's shoulder.

"So cool..." Elsa's eyes widened in awe at the sight.

"I already feel royal..." Jay awed in amazement.

"It's...beautiful." Zane gaped.

"Yeah, I could really get used to living in a place like this." Cole stated, admiring as well.

"Well, don't. We're only here as guests. Then it's back to protecting Ninjago." Garmadon sternly reminded Cole, and possibly the others who seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"Yeah, father's right." Lloyd reaffirmed Garmadon's words, making him smile at his son. "We've already been distracted once on this mission. Let's not have it happen again."

The group caught up with Hutchins, who was patiently waiting for them at another double-door—to the throne room of the palace.

Nya, who was the only one not impressed, simply stated, "Too much gold if you ask me."

Hutchins opened the door. "I present to you, the exalted emperor and empress of Ninjago, and their daughter, the Jade Princess, Princess Harumi."

When Harumi's eyes meet Lloyd's, she smiled kindly, making the green ninja blush once more. His father chuckled at his son's reaction.

The group reached the stairs, bowing in respect to the royal family. Though Lloyd had to elbow Nya to do so as well.

"We are honored by your presence, ninjas." The emperor stated as he and his wife bowed to them.

"The honor is all ours." Garmadon replied back.

"I have read so much about you, for your heroic efforts have made you legends." Harumi spoke up, descending the staircase. She raised her arms, making the ninjas rise as well. She then stepped over to the end of the line.

"Kai, the hothead who acts without question." Kai smugly smiled with pride.

"Cole, the cake loving rock and foundation of the team." Cole humbly grinned at the comment.

"Jay, the Joker whose mouth is as fast as lightning." Jay was smiling exscarically

"Zane, the cold and calculating android."

Zane bowed then turned into his titanium form. "Nindroid, your highness.

"Morro, the orphan who is as calm as before the storm."

"Nya and Elsari, the girls." Nya looked irked by the princess's comment while Elsa just looked confused. "The girls I've wanted to be ever since I first heard about them. With their masteries of water and snow, and skills that could rival any master."

"I like her!" Nya smiled.

"Lloyd, the green ninja, the second youngest and most powerful protector, and the heart and leader of the ninja team." Lloyd blushed at the princess's comment, and it deepened when he heard his father chuckle.

"And Sensei Garmadon, the firstborn descendant of the First Spinjitzu Master, the destroyer of the Great Devourer, and Lloyd's father. My condolences about your brother. I hope you find him soon." Harumi shut her eyes for a moment.

"Thank you. I've gotten used to his disappearance, but I still miss him nevertheless." Garmadon's expression turned grim, making his son pat him on the back in consolation. He turned to Lloyd and smiled softly in response.

"Seeing you all getting along so well like a family is truly heartwarming. I apologize for what happened to your own families. I lost my parents at a young age as well, but they took me in, and now I live here." Harumi smiled gratefully to the emperor and empress.

"My condolences as well, princess." Lloyd empathetically acknowledged.

"Me too." Garmadon agreed with his son before turning to the royal parents. "Thank you for inviting us into your home."

"It wasn't us," the emperor responded, "It was our daughter's."

"And she would like you to stay with us until the threat to our throne is over." The empress added.

"These are troubling times. And as long as we have an Oni Mask, we fear our lives are in jeopardy." said the emperor.

"The masks must _never_ be reunited. _Please say yes._ " Harumi's eyes fluttered again at Lloyd, and he couldn't help but want to do as she pleased. Just to make her smile again.

"It would be an honor, your highness." Lloyd acquiesced, bowing once more. He couldn't help but grin when he sees his answer got the princess smiling in relief again.

"Great. Then Mr. Hutchins can show you around the palace. Thank you for helping us." Lloyd's cheek warmed as he and Harumi locked eyes for a few seconds before the princess turned back to the stairs.

"If you will follow me, I will show you our treasures you will be protecting as well." The ninja celebrated that they _would_ be staying at the palace after all and follow Hutchins, while Lloyd hung back, still reeling on what happened. His father sensed it and walked next to his son with a teasing smile.

"You were pretty quick on answering the princess's question, huh?" Garmadon questioned his son's behavior. Lloyd just averted his eyes, trying to keep the warmth on his face under control.

"Do you... _like her?_ " Garmadon smirked at his son. Lloyd nearly yelped in shock from his father's question, his face now becoming completely red.

"Yes...I mean, no...I mean...I don't know what you're talking about." Lloyd stuttered out of control while using hand gestures like Jay. "Stop embarrassing me, dad! Let's go join the others."

"Fine, but you can't hide how you feel. I'm your father, I know such things." Garmadon bursted into chuckles as he heard his son groan in embarrassment.

* * *

"While you are in our service, you have full access to the complimentary royal buffet. Anything you want is at your disposal: exotic fruits, assorted vegetables, scones, and all-you-can-eat cake." Hutchins explained as they passed the buffet.

"Ah, thank you but I gave up sweets—my body is a temple." Cole pointed out, surprising everyone—even Sensei Garmadon—considering that they knew the master of earth was practically _obsessed_ with cakes.

"Ever since Sensei Wu went missing, Cole has been a real party pooper." Jay pointed out, since he was with Cole the most during the year.

"Party...pooper?" inquired Zane, not knowing the pop culture as well as the others due to him being a nindroid.

"I'll explain that one later." Jay replied to the nindroid.

 _"Not again..."_ Lloyd muttered, knowing exactly what was gonna happen.

"The palace is equipped with secret passages to get anywhere fast." Hutchins continued the tour.

"Ohhhh... So _that's_ why they call it the 'Palace of Secrets'" Kai realized.

"Yes, but as the locations of the secret passages, only the royal family knows."

"Sure, oh, you mean like...right here?!" Kai took out one of the books from a shelf they passed.

"Nope!"

"Or here!"

"Not there."

"Or right here!"

"No."

That continued on for awhile, until Garmadon decided to end it by bonking the hotheaded ninja with his bo-staff. As the sensei scolded Kai for his behavior, the ninjas surveyed the mess.

"Ah haha, we'll clean up after ourselves." Cole assured.

Hutchins just scoffed and walked away.

"Anyone else think there's something a little off about this guy?" Nya asked the team quietly.

"He's holding _something_ back." Lloyd muttered.

"Yeah..." Morro mused. "I wonder what."

Garmadon softly grimaced. Lloyd sighed. His father was always like this when Hutchins was mentioned.

"And finally, the reason for your protection." Hutchins declared as the ninja and Garmadon rush over to him. "The Mask of Deception." All the ninjas stared at the similar replica of the red mask the Kamiare children tried to protect.

When Garmadon stared at the mask, he shivered from the cold sensation it was giving off. Lloyd noticed his father's reaction and stepped closer to him.

Kai groaned at the creepy vibe it gave off. "Ugh... A face only a mother could love... Why would anyone want _that?_ "

"That's up to us to figure out." Lloyd conceded.

"Just being in the same room with it gives me the heebie-jeebies..." Jay meekly hid behind Lloyd.

"If this is the Mask of Deception, then what was stolen from Borg Industries?" Nya asked, turning to Lloyd, Morro, Elsa, and then Hutchins.

"Cyrus said it was called the Mask of Vengeance." Morro pointed out what he remembered from Cyrus's letter a few days ago.

"And...what about the third one?" Cole hesitantly asked.

"No one knows the third location of the third mask, but my sensors tell me that it won't be lost for long." Zane replied to Cole's question.

Garmadon saw, for who knows how many times, that Hutchins's expression darkened once more at the mention of the third mask. _Why is that man so interested in those masks?_

"Dark forces of all kind will be trying to get the masks, and believe me, the end of times will come for all of Ninjago if they ever come together..." Hutchins darkly warned.

Garmadon had enough of the conversation and left, clearly overwhelmed with the warning of his father's land that could fall.

" _Father..._ " Lloyd whispered, barely audible. He understood what his dad was anxious about, and he couldn't help but wonder what that threat could be.

Only time would tell.

* * *

Later that night, all the ninjas were patrolling the palace. Kai and Nya were on the roof of the palace, checking for any outside threats.

"All clear." Nya called out to her brother as she walked over to him.

"Here too," Kai replied, observing the area. That was when his eyes landed on something particularly strange.

"Wait, look..." Kai pointed out to the shadow figure coming out of the palace. Hutchins. He seemed to be looking over the area he was in before he turned around and spotted the siblings. For a second, they thought they saw his face flash darkly for a second before it turned back into the cool expression void of emotions. He then head back inside, leaving the fire-water team suspicious like Garmadon.

"Who's watching who?" Nya asked her brother.

Meanwhile, Cole, Zane, Jay, and Morro were patrolling by the buffet. Jay was busy eating the all-you-can-eat cakes while Cole looked on hungrily.

"Are you sure you don't want any? These cakes are delicious!" Jay showed off one of the chocolate cakes to the hungry-looking Cole.

"Nope. Like I said, my body is a temple." Cole sternly declined, giving himself a mantra in his mind to ward off his habit.

"Well, the buffet is clear of any threats...and they're all out of baloney." Jay observed the table.

"Right. 'Threats.'" Morro sarcastically comment, taking a cookie for himself since it had been a long time since he had anything sweet.

"Can we discuss now on what is a...party pooper?" Zane asked, coming up to the stubborn rock master.

Cole groaned in frustration that Zane remembers the conversation from a couple hours ago, but decided to answer it anyway. "Jay's upset that I'm the responsible one. With Sensei Wu gone, and Lloyd busy training with his father for the Ultimate Battle, someone has to keep us in check."

"Well in that case, you are correct. You are responsible." Cole smiled at Zane's comment. "It is nice to have the pooper in the party." And his smile dropped while Jay burst out laughing and Morro rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Guys, enough joking around." Morro sternly ordered his friends. Though Jay just ignored the wind master, still laughing out of control.

"T-Two if you count M-Morro." Jay pointed out the no-nonsense eldest member of the team. Morro scowled at the master of lightning, and then smirked when he got an idea to get them to shut up.

"You know, would you count in three since Lloyd's responsible as well?" Morro slyly asked to the still-laughing ninja. Cole caught sign of what the master was doing, and smirked as well.

"Y-Yeah, I guess." Jay choked out from his out-of-control giggles.

"And, uh, how would Garmadon, _his father,_ feel if he knew you called his son that?" Cole finally pointed out the problem. Jay finally stopped laughing altogether, and immediately pales. Everyone knew that Garmadon was _fiercely_ protective of his son, and if anyone badmouthed him, they'd better run as far as they could.

"Umm, on second thought, you, Morro, _and_ Lloyd are _definitely_ not party poopers." Jay chuckled uncontrollably, trying to calm his nerves now. He then leaned over to Zane and whispered, "Can you forget this conversation ever happen and _never_ bring it up to Sensei Garmadon?"

"Affirmative, Jay." Zane replied, making Jay sigh in relief. Cole and Morro fistbumped each other on their accomplishment.

At the Mask of Deception, Lloyd was approaching it, with his cousin Elsa behind him.

"So, you're the Mask of Deception?" Lloyd asked to the mask itself.

"Um, you do realize you're talking to an inanimate object, right?" Elsa asked jokingly, her pearl-white teeth smiling through her lips.

"Yeah, yeah. Just checking out this artifact." Lloyd leaned a bit closer without disturbing the glass, feeling a dark aura coming off of it. He shivered, wondering if his father felt that sensation as well when he stared at it.

Speaking of his father, he hadn't seen him since the tour with Hutchins at the Mask of Deception. Lloyd couldn't help but worry about his dad, but he knew he had to be strong for the team right now as leader.

Elsa, sensing the discomfort coming from her cousin, decided to change subject. "You know, I noticed you kept checking out the princess." That brought the energy master out of his thoughts and he softly blushed.

"Hey, stop invading my privacy!" Lloyd demanded, his face now fully flushed.

"It's not privacy. We all knew." Elsa teasingly smiled, bursting into giggles as her cousin's face became fully red.

"ELSAAAAAAA!" Lloyd whined in annoyance, making the snow master break out into laughter. Though he couldn't help but feel thankful that his cousin brought him out of his depressing thought.

Before he could thank his cousin and give a comeback comment, the two masters were interrupted by a glass breaking close by. Lloyd then heard the winds blowing from the princess's room. _What the..._

"Didn't that come from...?" Elsa points out the source of the sound, which was across from the mask. The princess's room.

"Princess? Princess Harumi?" Lloyd calmly called out to the Jade Princess as he slowly approached her room. He found himself in front of the bedroom's door and knocked, considering his mother taught him to be a gentleman.

When no one answered, he hesitantly opened the door. He was honestly surprised that it was unlocked considering the princess had guests. He barely got it open before Elsa, getting impatient, fully slid it further.

"Geez, this is no time for you to be a gentleman, cuz." Elsa muttered in annoyance. Lloyd just sheepishly smiled before turning back to the situation at hand. "Princess, are you in here?" When the two saw the interior of the room, they both gasped in shock.

The princess's bedroom was in complete chaos! Her bed was ruffled up with the pillows and blankets pushed to the side. The table was turned, spilling many essentials to the floor, which included the broken glass from what looked like a couple of bowls. The windows were opened, revealing the balcony and the flags being blown from the wind heard outside.

The princess was gone!


	7. The Jade Princess

Lloyd and Elsa both gaped at the state of the room. It was in such chaos that they had to step carefully when they come into the bedroom.

The green ninja then noticed the open window and ran out to the balcony. His eyes caught something on one of the roofs. There was someone in a green hoodie on the roof, and it was carrying a large bag of some sorts.

 _The princess!_

"Elsa, get the guards! The princess is being kidnapped!" Without another word or wait for a response from his cousin, he leapt off the balcony and began pursuing the figure.

With adrenaline flowing through his whole body, Lloyd began tumbling through the roof and stealthily followed the figure. He had to roll and slide when he landed on the palace's roof, but he was too occupied to even notice it.

He eventually found the cloaked person on the edge of one of the roof. It nearly spotted Lloyd before he ducked behind one of the roof. When Lloyd checked to see if the person wasn't looking anymore, and inwardly groaned to see that it was gone.

A metallic thump reached the ninja's ears, and he turned to see the cloaked person climbing up a fire escape in the distant building.

Motivated once more, Lloyd jumped from building to building until he reached the fire escape and jumped down to the roof that he saw the figure flee to. He spotted the person jumping in the air again, and he ran to bounce as well. Though he then saw that there was no roofs close to him, as he yelped in surprise and backed away before he could fall and crush himself. If that were to happen, he would _not_ hear the end of it from his father.

"You have got to be kidding me." Lloyd groaned as he observed the area below him. He then saw the clothesline that actually went across the large gap. _'How convenient...'_

Lloyd backed away slowly and then jumped off the roof to the closest line. Using his flexible body, he flipped from clothesline to clothesline until he got to the ladder the figure used a while ago.

But it all failed as Lloyd didn't count on it to be old and it bent forward as he caught it. The ninja yelped in shock and fear, scrambling to grab the roof before he fell to the cold ground. The pedestrians below him had finally noticed the green ninja was above them, and was hanging on for dear life.

The ladder broke and Lloyd was prepared to fall to the street. A soft yet firm grip was felt on his wrist and he was suddenly pulled up. When he looked to see who it was, Lloyd became shocked to see it was the cloaked figure!

"Who are you?" Lloyd demandingly asked as he prepared himself to battle the person. The moonlight was shining on the two people, allowing the ninja to clearly see the person he had been chasing after. It was wearing green overalls with a hoodie and a t-shirt that looked oddly familiar. The person took off their hood, and Lloyd gasped in shock when he recognized the face.

"P-Princess?!" Lloyd stutteringly gasped in shock to see the person he had been chasing was Harumi all along. "I thought you were kidnapped. I was trying to save you." Lloyd blushed in embarrassment.

"Was that what that was?" Harumi teased, "From my vantage, it looked like _I_ was the one saving _you_." Lloyd's blushed deepen when he remembered what happened a few moments ago.

"Y-Yeah, thanks for that." Wanting to change the subject, Lloyd turned his attention to the sack beside the princess. "Then if you weren't in the bag, what is?"

The princess smiled and opened it to reveal some food. "It's some food for the less fortunate. Even though I'm confined to the palace, I still try to give what I can." she explained.

"But your bedroom. It was ransacked." Lloyd questioned the princess.

"Yes...I _can_ be quite a slob. Thank you for noticing." Harumi teasedly thanked, though Lloyd took it a bit serious.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean–" Lloyd's apology was interrupted by the loud voice of none other than the master-at-arms.

"The princess is gone! Find her!" Hutchins's voice rang out throughout the palace and outwards. Lloyd inwardly groaned as he remembered he sent Elsa to get the guards.

"I'm so sorry, princess. I sent my cousins to get the guards to help me and–"

"Don't worry about it, but they can't know I left the palace! Disguise yourself! _Hurry!_ " Harumi grabbed a white hoodie from a clothesline, which Lloyd flinched at the thought of taking someone's clothing. Harumi noticed this and gave a reassuring smile. "It's okay. I know this family and they let me take clothes for disguises. It's how I got these." She gestured to the overalls she was wearing and handed over the hoodie.

After leaping over a few buildings, they made it back down to the streets and headed out into the night.

* * *

Meanwhile, Garmadon was wandering around the palace's hallways, trying to find his son. He had finally calmed down after the meltdown. He did feel guilty for rushing off just because of Hutchins's words.

He finally found the buffet area where he saw his nephew and his friends patrolling around, or what seemed to be having a conversation. He decided to just ask them where his son is.

"Ninjas-" Garmadon barely got his question out before Jay squealed loudly and his face paled in nervousness. The master of lightning actually looked ready to throw up as he nervously looked at the master of destruction.

"H-Hey, Sensei Garmadon...what's up?" Jay nervously greeted his sensei.

Garmadon wondered why Jay, _all of people_ , was nervous. Course, then again, it always meant he did something bad and that he didn't want the sensei or his brother to find out. And it was _never_ good. Though Garmadon was more interested in his son right now and decided to ignore it.

"Do you know where Lloyd is?" Garmadon asked to the ninjas.

Morro, being the one calm and attentive at the moment, stepped forward to his uncle. "He and my sister are both guarding the Mask of Vengeance, and–" The wind elemental was interrupted by the panting breathing of his sister rushing over.

"The princess has been kidnapped!" Elsa exclaimed breathlessly.

" _Then we have to leave._ " conceded Garmadon, his voice filled with concern for his only child. "You five check to see if any other intruders are in here. I'm going after him." Everyone knew he meant his son. Without another word, the sensei turned and fled to go out and find the princess and Lloyd in the streets of Ninjago City.

As he reached the lobby, he spotted Hutchins ordering the guards around. As he got closer, he heard the captain speak 'princess' and realized he also knew about the incident. Hutchins heard the sensei's footsteps and turned to Garmadon with the same emotionless expression on his face.

"Ah, Sensei Garmadon. I was hoping to find you." Garmadon bit a scowl and a sarcastic comment from escaping his lips. "I need your help in finding the princess. She has gone missing."

"I know. My son went after someone who might have informations about it." Hutchins stiffed at the mention of Lloyd, making Garmadon suspicious and uncomfortable.

"Are you sure we should trust your _son_ on saving the princess? He _did_ fail to save the Mask of Vengeance the other night, and I don't know if I could trust someone like him."

Garmadon gritted his teeth to control his impulse of lashing out at Hutchins, but that didn't stop him from defending his child. "Look, my son may have lost the mask, but he is capable of protecting people no matter what." He then stepped dangerously closer to the master-at-arms, his eyes glowing purple somewhat violently. He then gave a low growl as he spoke, "And if you _ever_ speak about my son like that again, I will show no mercy in using my powers. _And you_ won't _get away with it._ "

Hutchins, soon started to see the father's fierce protective nature. He shut himself up immediately and even became slightly fearful. Wanting to just move that conversation along, he quickly turned to the gate and opened it. He faced the angered sensei with his expression back to neutral, and gestured him to follow.

"Let's just get going and find them." Garmadon forced himself to calm down, and decided to just focus on finding the two teens. He prayed to his own father that his son and the princess were both safe.

* * *

Lloyd and Harumi were walking along the docks. The two of them climbed down a ladder. Harumi handed a woman and a girl with white braided hair some food.

"Some things are easier to do when you're not a princess. If I asked my parents, they would _never_ allow it." she sighed softly. "But these people are hungry... And we have so much food in the palace." She handed some food to a group of hyper children. Lloyd helped her out as well. "Patience, little ones. There's enough for each of you."

As the two continued to walk, Lloyd decided to speak up.

"Can I ask you a question?" Lloyd asked to Harumi, to which she nodded. "Do you _enjoy_ being a princess?"

For a second, he thought he went a bit personal when he saw the princess frown, but then she responded, "Everyone thinks being a princess is supposed to be...easy...and wonderful... And I guess it's okay, but a lot of the time it's really hard."

Lloyd sighed. "Huh. Tell me about it." Realizing what he said, he quickly points out, "Not being a princess, I mean being the green ninja." The two walked across the bridge and eventually stopped in the middle of it and looked out the canal.

Harumi took her hood off, replying, "We have to live up to a role that was bestowed upon us. We never chose these mantles we hold." Harumi told the green ninja.

"I know. It's hard to live a normal life." Lloyd lowered his head, remembering how he had a hard time making friends when he was younger. He didn't know if he should point out that his parents both put him in a lot of playgroups, considering Harumi lost her parents and wouldn't want a reminder of what she lost.

"At least I wear a mask, but you-"

Harumi smiles and replied, "I wear my own masks. Sometimes painted, sometimes the kidnapper of princesses." Harumi put her hood on and laughed evilly, making Lloyd laugh as well.

Their moment was interrupted by the sound of broken glass, grunts, and laughter. The green duo turned to see what was going on, and are shocked to see what is around the corner. A large group of thugs were harassing about three kids in rags, and they were enjoying it. Seeing the heartless thugs bullying the poor children made the green ninja growl in anger and feel his power rise.

As the biker turned, Lloyd gasped. He had the Sons of Garmadon symbol on his jacket! Lloyd softly growled, about to summon his powers until Harumi held him back.

"No, you're gonna get us caught!" Harumi whisper-yelled to get his attention.

"Sorry, Harumi. But we can't just leave those children unprotected..."

Just then, an engine revved, and a large vehicle pulled up in front of the group. Lloyd noticed it was similar to his Nightcrawler. Someone came out of the vehicle, and Lloyd recognized it as their mysterious ally, Samurai X.

"Step away from the pedestrians." He held up golden katanas at the bikers, and they dropped their weapons and fled. This relieved the ninja and the princess.

"Stay safe, little ones." Samurai X advised to the children before disappearing into the vehicle and leaving.

Lloyd smiled in relief. "It's good to have someone else protecting the city, huh?" He then turned to his green watch on his wrist and saw it was getting pretty late.

"Princess-?"

"Please, call me Rumi." Lloyd widened his eyes in surprise and blushed.

"Lloyd. Lloyd Garmadon. I enjoyed spending time with you, and–"

"Princess!" the voice belonged to Hutchins.

"Lloyd!" Garmadon called out at the same time. Lloyd got tackled into a tight embrace by his own father, who sighed in relief.

"It's okay, dad. Rumi and I were–"

" _Rumi?_ " asked Hutchins. "Since when were you two going on a first-name basis?"

"Calm down." Garmadon said, keeping a protective arm around his son.

"Princess, you aren't supposed to be out here without an escort."

"I can do whatever I want." Harumi retorted. "And besides, Lloyd was my escort. He came with me to protect me."

"He failed to–" Hutchins immediately shut his mouth when he saw Garmadon harshly glaring at him. Hutchins sighed, not wanting a repeated threat from the sensei. "Come with me, your highness. Your parents were worried about you."

Harumi bowed and obliged. She frowned sadly at the green ninja, who whispered, "Go with him." She hesitantly nodded and began walking back with Hutchins keeping an arm around the princess. He looked back at the two and gave a smug smile, infuriating the two, though Lloyd's lasted only a second.

Lloyd felt his eyes water as Hutchins and Harumi walked away till they disappeared from a corner. He sat down on a nearby rock, his head buried in his hands. He felt his relationship with her was quite hopeless.

Garmadon sighed, sitting down beside his son, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You love her, don't you?"

Lloyd was unable to suppress his emotions from Garmadon any longer. He nodded and cried into his father's chest. Garmadon wrapped his arms around Lloyd's body, softly whispering sweet nothings into his son's hair in response. " _Shhh... Shhh... I'm here... It'll be okay... Hold onto me...hold on..._ "

Moments went on for a while as the father continued to hold his child against him.

Lloyd eventually calmed down and he looked up at his dad guiltily. "I'm sorry..."

"For what?" Garmadon asked in confusion.

"For leaving with Harumi without letting you know. And making you worry." Lloyd laid his head on his father's broad shoulder and looked down in shame. His father gently took ahold of his son's chin and raised his head to look into his emerald eyes.

"It's alright, son. I would've done the same thing with your mother." Garmadon smiled dazedly. "In fact, I actually did." Lloyd instantly relaxed over the fact that he hadn't upset his father.

"W-When I was with Rumi, I saw her in a different light. Like she was just a normal person, not held back by the shackles of her...royalness, I guess you could say." Lloyd smiled at the moment he had with her, making his father smile back, though this time, it was sincere, not joking.

"There were times, so long ago, when...I was so overwhelmed with my training that I just needed a break, and I left the monastery to visit your mother in Jamonakai Village without my father's permission. She came from an unstable family, but the moments that I spent with her, it was like...she had never been through that pain at all." Garmadon smiled sadly at the memories, holding his son so close to him. He didn't want to be like Misako's family and hurt Lloyd to the point where they were so distant. Tears welled up in his eyes at the very thought, and in response, he softly rocked his child affectionately.

"Lloyd, _I won't be like them...I'll never let you go...I love you so much, son..."_ Garmadon soothingly whispered into his son's ears, cradling him close to his chest.

Soon, Garmadon heard the soft snores of his son reached his ears. He looked down at Lloyd, and smiled at how peaceful and innocent he looked, his face so serene and his body completely relaxed. He pressed a loving kiss on his forehead and picked him up gently before heading back to the palace.

"It's okay, my child... _Everything is gonna be okay..._ "


	8. Fallen Reign

**Elina: Here's Chapter 8 AND the turning point of the story! This is pretty much the longest chapters we have written thus far. Warning though, it gets pretty dark later on, so be prepared.**

 **Zena: YEEET LEZ GET ON WITH IT!**

* * *

Muffled voices reached Lloyd's ears, waking the ninja up. He looked around, vaguely aware of where he was from his fuzzy mind. The memories slowly then returned to his brain, as he recollected what happened yesterday. The speech...the tour...the mask...the princess...

 _HARUMI!_

The last thought woke the green ninja right up.

Lloyd sat up in shock, though was held down by a strong arm. He turned to his right and saw it was just his sleeping father holding him protectively. Lloyd smiled softly and very carefully pried the arm off him, then goes over to where the noise was coming from.

As he stepped out of his room, he turned to see the source of the voices coming from the throne room. The royal family.

"You can't just go around gallivanting around with a ninja whenever you feel like it! It's undignifying!" complained the emperor.

"Not to mention dangerous!" The empress added.

"But he's _not just a ninja!_ " Harumi exclaimed, trying to defend the green ninja.

"You are royalty. He is not." The emperor's words actually stung Lloyd a little, and his eyes watered just a bit. He blinked them away.

"I'm sorry, I have dishonored your name, _and our house._ " Harumi's voice sounded sad and remorseful, breaking Lloyd's heart.

"Oh, Harumi. We're sorry. We all have a role to play and yours is in this palace. Your heart mustn't interfere."

The princess was overwhelmed, running out the door, and when she looked at Lloyd, she burst into tears and turned away.

" _Rumi..._ " Lloyd couldn't help but feel guilty and hurt for what happened last night. He never meant to bring their family harm.

 _"Some green ninja I am..."_ Lloyd scoffed in frustration to himself as he attempted to leave. Only to be stopped by the one person he disliked in the palace.

"Oh, indeed, ninja. You only bring harm to those you care for." Lloyd's throat tightened at the stern yet smug expression on the master-at-arms' face. Those words were practically like daggers to his heart. "And if you know what's good for you, _stay away from her._ " Hutchins demanded to Lloyd, getting really close to his face.

Lloyd grew overwhelmed and scared, and fled back to his bedroom. When he slammed the door shut, he accidentally woke Garmadon right up.

"Lloyd..." Garmadon's voice was laced with concern as he saw his son collapse into his arms.

The green ninja was straight-up sobbing.

"Shhhh... I'm here... I'm right here..." Garmadon ran a hand through his son's hair in an attempt to calm him down. "What's the matter?"

"I-It's Rumi... I think I'm hurting her and her family... But when the two of us are together, she enjoys it... I-I'm so confused..." Lloyd choked out through his sobs, trying his best to calm down for his own sake, but it was impossible at the moment.

"Shh...calm down... It's okay... _Everything's going to be alright..._ "

A few moments later when Lloyd had finally calmed down, Garmadon answered his son's question. "You know what, just continue spending time with her. She _does_ enjoy it, and she likes you. It doesn't matter what other people think. If you two like each other, then continue that relationship. Do whatever makes you happy." He advised, giving a soft smile to console his distressed son.

"B-But Hutchins...h-he said to my face that I bring harm to people I love... _A-And I think he might be right..._ "

"He _WHAT?!_ " Garmadon gasped in shock at what he just heard, then softly growled in anger. How dare he say such things to his own child?! The father was trying his hardest to keep himself composed, to keep his temper in check. His son needed him now. "Shhh...that is _not_ _who you are..._ You're so sweet... _so compassionate...and you are the best protector of all of Ninjago..._ "

Lloyd relaxed at those sincere words, his sobs starting to lessen.

"I'm right here..." Garmadon whispered ever so softly. " _It's going to be alright..._ "

After a few minutes had passed, Lloyd had finally calmed down and the two of them pulled away.

"Thank you... I'm so lucky to have you as my father..." Lloyd snuggled deep into his father's chest, feeling content in his presence. "At least you let me go out with her... And be myself..."

"I would've done the same. You deserve to be with someone, my child... And I will always love you for who you are..." Garmadon pressed a kiss lovingly on his forehead, his eyes glistening with tears of delight. " _Always..._ "

Lloyd smiled in response, softly crying as well. "D-Don't leave me..."

"Of course I wouldn't." Garmadon whispered soothingly, burying his face into his son's soft hair.

The two kept a tight embrace on each other for moments on end. Eventually, they slowly pulled away, Garmadon leaving the room to give his son a moment to himself. He decided to take that time to confront Hutchins about what just happened. And it was _not_ going to be pleasant.

* * *

Garmadon wandered through the palace hallway when he spotted the one person he had been meaning to talk to.

"Afternoon, sensei." Hutchins casually greeted Garmadon like he never harassed Lloyd.

Those thoughts angered the father as he slammed the guard right onto the wall. His eyes were glowing ominously purple as he glared with barely any sanity. "Don't speak to me like we're friends, Hutchins! _Lloyd told me EVERYTHING!_ I _SPECIFICALLY_ told you not to backtalk him but you _STILL did it!_ "

"L-Look, Sensei Garmadon, I was just trying to protect the princess and her family from being dishonored in any way. Your son nearly did it when he told us Harumi was kidnapped but _wasn't_ , and then just let her keep being outside in the filthy streets instead of bringing her back to the palace." Hutchins explained to the angered father.

"And then you told _MY son_ to stay away from her when he was just being himself!" Garmadon leaned closer to Hutchins's face, his hands radiating with his destruction element. "You told Lloyd to stay away from Harumi, so I am going to ask you to _stay away from my son._ Don't go near him. Don't talk to him. Don't even talk _about_ him. _Is that clear?!"_ Garmadon growled so harshly that Hutchins actually showed _complete_ fear on his face, and it wasn't because of his threat. His teeth were now pointy and his purple eyes were glowing red instead, and it remained like that until Garmadon turned to leave.

As the now-calmed sensei was about to exit the hallway, Hutchins called out, "Then keep your powers under control, because I saw your appearance change a bit. Like some sort of monster."

Garmadon immediately stopped, his heart clenching at what Hutchins just said. Did he really act like a monster? Like some kind of demon? His mind goes back to the symbol of the Sons of Garmadon, and his throat tightened in fear. Did he act like the very being that those bikers worshipped? He needed to tell Lloyd as soon as possible. He just hoped he wouldn't be scared at what his father might be starting to become. Tears pricked his eyes as he fled the area.

 _Son... I'm sorry... I don't know what's happening to me... But I don't want to be separated from you... I don't want to have to hurt you... I love you too much, my child..._

* * *

Meanwhile, Lloyd had calmed down from what happened, and decided to go to have breakfast with the ninjas. He needed to apologize to them for the wild goose chase he may have caused.

Lloyd reached the buffet area, and saw that all his friends were up and dressed into their gis already. His heart clenched in guilt to see them acting like nothing happened last night. He just hoped that when he apologizes and explains what happened, they would forgive him. Someday.

Before the green ninja could even get a word out of his mouth, his stomach seemed to have gotten impatient with him and let out a loud growl. This got everyone's attention in a matter of seconds.

"H-Hey guys." Lloyd awkwardly called to the ninja. They all just stared at their leader with blank faces, which made him more uncomfortable. "Mind if I sit here?"

"Sure. There's a seat between your cousins over there." Jay first spoke up, which Lloyd concluded was just normal since Jay was always talkative.

"So...what happened to Harumi?" Kai asked.

Lloyd sighed, knowing he expected this to happen. "That figure Elsa and I saw _was_ actually Rumi." The ninjas all gasped in surprise. Lloyd's face became slightly flushed in embarrassment and guilt. "Yeah, she was going out to give food to the poor aaaannnd I went with her." The others all gave pointed looks at the green ninja, making him blush. "To protect her. Since the Sons of Garmadon are out there, you know."

Lloyd lowers his head in guilt and shame, taking a deep breath. "Which is why I want to say I'm sorry for causing a disturbance last night. I take full responsibility for what happened, and I'll make sure to tell the royal family that when I explain my side of the story." Lloyd lowered his head in apology, hoping the others will take his words seriously.

The others all stare at Lloyd in silence, not knowing what to say about Lloyd's apology. Finally, Elsa reached her hand to Lloyd's back, and patted it in reassurance. "It's okay, cuz. You were just trying to look out for the princess, and that's a good thing."

"Yeah, don't put yourself down, kid. We all act without thinking. Especially me, of course." Kai warmly yet smugly grinned at his brother-in-arms, making Lloyd genuinely smile as well.

"But I do need to ask one thing from you," Morro suddenly speaks up, his tone dark and emotionless. Lloyd tensed, knowing that his cousin was going to ask something serious. He didn't know what Morro was going to ask, but something told the green ninja that he wasn't gonna like it.

"When you were talking about the princess," Morro began, pausing to create tension. Lloyd gulped nervously, and the others all leaned towards the two cousins. Then Morro smirked with mischief in his eyes, "How come you were calling her _Rumi_ instead of Harumi or princess?" Lloyd's shoulders dropped in a flash as his face starts to turn red in embarrassment.

"Morrroooooo!" Lloyd groaned his cousin's name long. He couldn't believe that, _of all people,_ his no-nonsense teammate had to bring up _that_ topic again.

Cole then joked, lightening the conversation a bit, "Looks like Lloyd's got the hots for Harumi after all!"

"Lloyd's heart is on fire! Lloyd's heart is on fire! Lloyd's heart is on fire!" Jay replied in a sing-song voice.

Lloyd facepalmed at Jay's childish antic. "Uuugh... Cut it out..." he groaned.

The others all laugh at the green ninja's reaction, the awkwardness fading away into a distant memory.

"Son, I need to have a moment with you." Garmadon said, approaching the table.

Lloyd nodded, Elsa getting out of the booth so he could talk with his father alone.

The two of them went over to an empty room so they can have privacy.

"You wanted to talk me?" asked Lloyd.

"Yes..." Garmadon drew in a breath, then took his son's hands into his own.

"First of all, don't be upset, but...I confronted Hutchins about what happened." Garmadon held his hand out, stopping his son from complaining. "I'm your father, Lloyd. I wasn't going to let that guy hurt you like that and get away with it. I ordered him to stay away from you, and I was just about to leave when he mentioned that I...physically changed a bit."

"What do you mean?" asked Lloyd concernedly.

"H-He said I looked and acted like...like a monster... _a demon..._ " Garmadon buried his face into his hands and cried, his back against the wall. "L-Like the one in the Sons of Garmadon symbol... _I refused to let that happen to me... I don't understand... I_ can't _understand..._ " He just couldn't take it.

"D-Don't hurt me, Father... _please._ " Lloyd bursted into tears.

" _Oh Lloyd..._ " Garmadon pulled his son into his chest, tears falling from his own eyes. " _I would never...you know that...I love you...Shhhhh...everything will be okay..._ I promise... _"_

* * *

Later that night, the ninjas were all patrolling in and around the palace. And this time, Garmadon was with them.

Cole was on the roof, climbing it like a mountain.

It reminded him of when he'd met Sensei Wu over a year ago. It made him sad that the person who took him out of the depression he was suffering from his mother's death and his father's neglect was gone. He remembered what Wu had told him about grieving.

 _'Grief takes many shapes and forms. Some sing and dance, and some climb mountains.'_

Since then, he has been taken in by the Kamiare Family, and his depression faded away. He felt like he was home, with siblings who loved him and guardians who cared for him. Even though he had made amends with his father, and he still felt saddened by the fact that his mother, the elemental master of earth, he found out, wasn't there to see him become a ninja, Wu came to give him a family he needed, and he did.

"And I'll find you, Sensei..." he vowed to himself.

He was shaken out of his thoughts when he spotted something intriguing: Hutchins walking around in the garden. Having heard about bad mouthing his little brother-in-arms and forbidding him from being with the princess, Cole disliked the guy. He leapt from roof to roof to get a better view of what was going on.

He finally stopped, seeing Hutchins press one of the rocks, opening up some sort of secret passageway. Suspiciously glaring at the man, he stealthily followed Hutchins, before going in himself.

Eventually he ended up underground, seeing vials of yellow liquid hanging from the top of the cavern.

"Blast Sap!" the master of earth realized the contents of the containers and warned the ninjas and his sensei. "Guys, the palace has been rigged! It's going to explode! It was Hutchins!" He began running out of the passageway just as he heard the bombs about to explode. "Get everyone out! Especially the royal family!"

* * *

Garmadon had reached Kai and Nya, heeding Cole's warning.

 _I knew it... I KNEW there was something off about that man..._ Garmadon screamed to himself in his thoughts.

"We need to get the royal family out of here!" He heard Kai yell as he and his sister began running inside with their sensei. But before they could even get in, a large explosion cut them off, sending them to the ground. When they got up and look at what happened, they saw nothing but chaos.

A large fire roared to life as it began engulfing the front of the palace. Large screams echoed through the air as people in and out of the palace ran away in fear. Cries for help came from the inside, begging to get out of the fiery destruction.

 _Lloyd!_ He remembered his son was patrolling in there! He twirled his bo-staff around and began taking down the incoming bikers that surrounded the now-burning palace. As much as he wanted to keep the gang from getting in and stealing the mask, he was much more worried about his son _inside_ the fire.

A biker skided in front of the master, brushing dirt into his eyes. As soon as he got them out of his eyes, he looked up to see a woman with a purple mask over her mouth, deathly pale skin, and a very crazy look in her eyes. The aura she's giving off was making Garmadon very uncomfortable right now.

"Hello, Sensei Garmadon! Or should I say, papa?" The woman giggled uncontrollably as she got off the the bike and took out a sai.

Garmadon's eyes glow a dark purple as he growled softly. "You will _never_ be my child!" He launched into a dark purple Spinjitzu attack and sucked Ultra into it, pinning her to the wall. "The only child I will ever love and want is Lloyd, and he is _inside_ that fire because of _you and your pals!_ "

"FAAAATHEEEEEEEER!" Lloyd cried out, who sounded like he's in _complete_ pain, fueling Garmadon's rage even more.

"AND YOU WILL _NEVER_ SEPARATE ME FROM HIM! _EVER!_ " He finally flung the woman all the way to the other side of the road, crashing into the other bikers as she landed. He rushed over to the entrance of the palace praying to his father that his child was okay.

He turns to the other ninjas fighting off the bikers and called out, "Quick, this way!"

But before the ninjas could spring into action, Ultra Violet, who had gotten back on her bike, sped over, heading right inside the palace. She turns to Garmadon and called out, "You won't have a choice once I'm done with him!"

This caused Garmadon's heart to drop, and he raced to stop the sadistic woman before she goes to harm his son. _Lloyd...be strong...I'm coming..._

* * *

Lloyd was having a hard time fighting those crooks. Not only were they professional fighters, but they were on their bikes, making it harder to catch them. And not to mention all the debris falling to the ground. Some of them were lit on fire!

He ran through the hallway, trying to find anyone. His friends...the princess...his father... He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice a biker side-kicking him to a weary wall.

"Well if it isn't the imposter son of Garmadon!" A male biker with a Mohawk laughed sadistically, along with two others by his side.

Lloyd growled in anger and got up, taking out his sword. "You guys have _no honor_ of calling my father your own! And _you will not get away with this!"_ The green ninja performed a somersault and threw his sword at the bike causing it to explode. The bikers all got off before they ended up dying. Lloyd started to stalk over to them, his anger boiling out of control. For a second, his eyes glow red as he shoved the thugs to a corner with his element.

His mind is starting to fade away, though. All he cared about was ending those petty crooks' lives. For calling themselves Garmadon's children. For causing this chaos to befall the royal family. For possibly causing so many deaths!

Before he could even commit a heinous act, a loud, familiar shriek brought Lloyd out of his dark thoughts. _RUMI!_ Lloyd screamed in his mind, breaking out of the unknown darkness from corrupting him. He looked at the thugs in front of him, and gasped at their terrified faces.

He was in shock, horrified at what he just tried to do. He could not believe he tried to kill someone! His thoughts were telling him it was the right to do, that they deserved it. But that would have made him as bad as them!

Lloyd dropped his sword as his emotions began to take over. He looked up at the bikers with his watery eyes, full of remorse and guilt. " _I-I'm so sorry... I never meant–_ " Lloyd's words were interrupted when a sharp pain hit him in the back, sending him to the other side. He looked up to see another biker, this time with his face painted as a skeleton, which matched his creepy smile.

"You _actually_ tried to say sorry to us. Our lord shouldn't have such a wimpy crybaby for a son!" The skeleton-like biker throws a dagger above Lloyd, hitting a weak yet fiery beam. Lloyd moved out of the way so he won't be burned to death. Unfortunately, it hits him square on his right shoulder, bringing massive, burning pain to Lloyd.

"FAAAATHEEEEEEEER!" he instinctively shrieked in pain, both physically and emotionally.

Laughter reached his ears as Lloyd struggled to see through the smoke. His throat began to tighten from his held-back sobs and the grimy air getting in his mouth. Overwhelming feelings were clouding his mind, making the green ninja dizzy.

"LLOYD!" The green ninja turned to the robotic sound of the nindroid as he froze the thugs in ice. He was then picked and dragged away from more fiery debris falling to the floor.

"Z-Zane, thank you..." Lloyd weakly thanked his nindroid friend as they left to a corner to catch his breath.

As he kicked another biker that was about to crash into him, he spotted the very person that was responsible for the chaos. Immediately, Lloyd rushed right to Hutchins and pinned him to one of the palace's poles.

"Ugh, what is it with you and your father pinning me?" Hutchins groaned in annoyance, despite the incident going on right now.

"You did this! You helped them!" Lloyd accused Hutchins.

Just then, a sadistic laughter reached the ninja's ears, and before he could even react, Hutchins called out, "Watch out!" Lloyd was pushed into the ground as a sai was thrown right for the back of his head. Though it did nick Lloyd's arm, giving it a bloody gash.

"Y-You saved me..." Lloyd managed to gasp out, trying to process what happened. He turned his head to where the weapon came from, and widened his eyes as he saw an angry, crazy woman driving right for him!

He did a somersault as she attempted to crush him, but she then shoved Lloyd to the ground and picked up the sai again. "SAY GOODBYE, _IMPOSTER!_ " Ultra Violet screamed, ready to stab him with the weapon.

With the condition Lloyd was in, he knew he couldn't get the crazy woman off of him. He shut his eyes, preparing for death...but then...

"STAY _AWAY FROM MY SON!_ " A familiar person screamed out to Ultra Violet just as a large purple ball slammed the woman to the wall.

Lloyd looked up through his bleary eyes and spotted a person rushing up to him, crying out his name. " _Father..._ " the energy elemental whispered weakly, wincing at the pain spread throughout his body and his lung.

Garmadon sighed in relief, but gasped in shock when he sees the state his son is in. "What have they _done_ to you?!" he exclaimed softly, pulling Lloyd against him, being careful to not disturb his injuries.

"S-She was trying to end me." Lloyd barely muttered, coughing when he spoke.

Garmadon blinked back tears. " _How dare they..._ "

"A-And I was about to _really_ hurt people... _I'm so sorry, father!_ " Lloyd cried, guilt crushing his heart.

Garmadon's mouth dropped in surprise, unable to believe what he heard. His son would _never_ try to kill someone, no matter what reasons. An idea came to his mind, and he winced guiltily as he realized the reason for his son's brash behavior. But he can't tell him yet. Not with all the chaos going on.

Knowing they needed to get out of danger, he decided to numb his son's pain; there wasn't enough time to heal it, however. Once he was done, he helped his son up and began to take him away from the bloodthirsty bikers.

Garmadon half-dragged/half-carried his weakened son through all the chaos as the bikers called out for their 'father.' His powers were nearly set off when some of them had the nerves to try to hurt his actual child _in front of him_! He was really struggling to keep himself composed. Then he heard Hutchins's voice close by.

"Quick, over here!" As much as he didn't want to trust that man, Lloyd started dragging his father over to them. Garmadon just sighed in frustration, deciding to just trust his son at the moment.

Once they were inside, the two collapsed, trying to catch their breath in the one room not overtaken by smoke and bikers. Lloyd weakly looked up to see that not only Hutchins was here, but Harumi and Zane as well. He sighed in relief, glad that Zane got to her before it was too late.

When the princess spotted the green ninja on the floor, she gasped in shock at the state he was in. "Lloyd, what happened to you?" Harumi shrieked as she rushed over to help him as he struggled to stand up.

"Let's just say...now I know why Mr. E may not like me more than the others."

Garmadon looked up as well, and when his eyes spotted Hutchins, they flashed purple for a few seconds.

"Calm down... It was I who saved your son's life." Garmadon's eyes stopped glowing and he turned to his son, who nodded in agreement.

He sighed in relief and turned to Hutchins with the first sincere smile since he met the man. "Thank you... I owe you one." He could feel his heart clench with compassion for Lloyd, glad that he was still alive.

A beep rang in Lloyd's ears, his teammates trying to reach him. He turned it on and called out, "Guys, are you okay?"

"US?! We heard you were nearly killed back there! Three times! Are _you_ okay?" Morro screamed into Lloyd's now fragile ears.

"Y-Yeah, the others got to me in time. Now, _what about you?!"_ Lloyd's voice cried out, his concern and frustration clear in his voice.

"Elsa and I are outside trying to get any bystanders or injured guards out of here!" Morro answered. Then another voice comes into the earpiece.

"And we're protecting the mask from that thief you guys encountered at the robbery." Cole's voice rang into the conversation.

"Except now he has four arms!" Jay joined in, his voice hysterical as usual.

"Then use spinjitzu or something, grab the mask, and get the heck outta there!" Lloyd cried out, fear starting to grow inside of his chest.

Before anyone could say anything, a loud sizzling noise was heard, and someone screamed out "Kai!"

"What happened?! Is Kai okay? What was that noise?" Lloyd cried out in worry, getting Garmadon and Harumi's attention.

"Nothing, my brother's fine, but uh...he may or may not have destroyed the Mask of Deception." The others all gaped at what they just heard, but Hutchins just ignored and went over to the princess's throne, looking for something.

"Don't worry. That one was just a decoy." Now the others all turned to the guard captain as he takes out a familiar orange mask in his hands. The Mask of Deception.

"The mask?!" Harumi gasped.

"Forgive me, your highness. It _was_ the Mask of Deception, and I didn't know if I could trust the ninjas and their sensei." Normally Garmadon would be disgusted by Hutchins's deception, but he can't help but agree with him. "Take it and get the princess out of here."

"But, what about my parents?"

"I'll find them."

Lloyd bowed in gratitude. "My father and I were wrong about you."

Garmadon gave an apologetic smile. "Indeed. I thank you for saving my son's life."

"Go!"

Lloyd, Harumi, Zane, and Garmadon nodded, going down into the passageway under the princess's throne, managing to escape.

* * *

The three all rushed right through the secret passage, trying to get out without being spotted. They eventually made it outside to the fresh air, much to Lloyd's relief. Though the front was falling apart, with many buildings burning and the bikers driving around the chaos.

One biker, the skeleton-like one from before, drove past the group. The three then left their hiding spot, preparing to head off until another explosion was heard behind them, stunning them.

Suddenly, half a dozen bikers began circling the group, laughing maniacally as they trapped them. They all called out different things to the father and son, while ignoring the princess.

"Hey papa! Where are you going with that wimp?"

"Give us the mask, fraud!"

"Don't go, papa!"

Garmadon growled, seething in anger, having just about enough of this. His bangs fell to his eyes as they glowed an ominous purple, making him frightening to both the bikers and the green duo. "I told you before... _I AM NOT YOUR FATHER! LEAVE MY SON AND THE PRINCESS_ ALONE _!"_

He launched himself into the air and prepared one of his destruction attacks.

Lloyd realized what his father was about to do and pushed Harumi to the side before they could get accidentally hit. "Watch out, Rumi!"

The master of destruction slammed his hand to the center of the circle, creating a powerful wave that blew the bikers off of their motorcycles.

"Whoa, I didn't know your father could do that..." Harumi awed in surprise.

Lloyd weakly smiled, remembering the last time something similar like that happened a year ago. With the Great Devourer.

When his powers faded away, Garmadon opened his eyes and saw the damage he caused. _We'll have to fix it later, but we need to move._ He turned to see the princess and his son all looking in astonishment, though he frowned in concern when he saw fear in Lloyd's eyes. "We have to get out of here."

"'Kay, dad!" Lloyd grabbed one of the motorcycles laid on the ground, he and the princess getting on it. Garmadon got on one as well, the two vehicles speeding away from the burning palace.

They drove away, attempting to escape the fiery bedlam, but they were soon followed by a couple more bikers. Led by none other than the sadistic woman, Ultra Violet.

"You two keep going!" Garmadon called. "I'll take care of her!" Before Lloyd could protest, the destruction master turned a corner and disappeared. Following him were the crooks plotting to steal the mask.

Except one.

Ultra Violet was still chasing Lloyd and Harumi for whatever reason, but it could've been to finish off what she started.

"Get over here and fight me, coward!" Ultra Violet screeched, waving her sai around like the maniac that she was. Every time she got closer, she tried to slash the green ninja to pieces. Lloyd struggled to dodge them as she was very quick with her weapon, but was only able to graze his skins, giving him new cuts.

It continued on for a while until they come to the lower part of the highway, and they heard loud laughters from above them.

 _Father..._ Lloyd worriedly thought of Garmadon while hearing the fighting going on from above.

He was brought out of his thoughts by his father cursing and the sound of something exploding.

"FATHER!" Lloyd shrieked, trying to see what happened and if his father was okay. A thud was heard behind him, and he turned the bike to see it was none other than the Mask of Deception.

As much as he wanted to worry about his dad at the moment, he knew that he also had to get the mask away from Ultra Violet. He revved the bike up, and spotted the woman doing the same. He knew what was going to happen.

It was a race to grab the mask.

"Rumi, I need you to get that mask off the ground when I drive there. I'll keep Ultra Violet from getting it." Lloyd told the princess, with plead in his voice.

"Are you serious? What about your dad?!" Harumi asked with worry clear in her voice.

"He can take care of himself. C'mon, we don't have much time."

She nodded, and Lloyd sped toward the Mask of Deception. Ultra Violet sped ahead, ululating and screaming as she was about to reach the mask. Lloyd takes his sword out and prepares to offense Ultra Violet while Rumi would grab the mask.

Eventually, time seemed to slow down as they intersected. Ultra Violet prepared to hit the two with her sai again while reaching for the mask with her free hand. But Lloyd had his sword out and used it as a shield while Harumi was able to grab the mask in time.

The green ninja sighed in relief, then were chased on another highway by a now very enraged Ultra Violet for awhile.

Eventually, the two motorcycles met up once again and reached the docks where the _Destiny's Bounty_ was waiting for them. They all drove as fast as they could away from their pursuers.

"Father, you're okay!" Lloyd greeted as he took off his hood.

When Garmadon saw the new injuries on his son's body, he groaned in frustration and anger. "You have _got_ to be _kidding me?"_ He remarked as he inspected the cuts. "The faster we escape, the sooner we can take care of those."

Lloyd nodded, the three of them getting onto the boat. Ultra Violet and her gang were soon to arrive.

"They're coming!" Harumi cried. "I don't think we can sail fast enough!"

Lloyd runs over to the controls, and began punching in the code. It starts up for a second but fades back to black, making the ninja kick it. This time, it worked and the screen reveals the map of all of Ninjago.

"Who said anything about flying?" Lloyd smirked.

An engine roar was heard as the thugs finally reached the boat, preparing to capture the three passengers. But before they could do anything, the ship started to lift into the air and fly away.

"Now, let's get the others."

* * *

The green duo looked out from the deck of the ship, waiting for the others to come out from the fiery wreckage. Garmadon was driving the ship since Lloyd's arms were too injured to do anything now.

Lloyd gave a sympathetic smile and gently wrapped an arm around her, trying to ignore the pain from the soreness. The sun began to rise up, with the light hitting the two figures on the ship. And despite the smoke of the burning palace in their view, Lloyd and Harumi looked out to the reflected buildings being gleamed off from the sunlight.

Garmadon sincerely smiled at the two, happy at the sight of the two new couple that was sure to kindle.

Eventually they reach another building where the ninjas were all waiting for them. As they all climbed aboard, they gasped in shock when they saw the state their leader, sensei, and the princess were in.

"Are you guys okay?" Morro asked concernedly, checking on his cousin's injuries. Lloyd just nodded tiredly.

Harumi spoke, concern flooding her words. "The Emperor and the Empress? Where is Hutchins? Did he make it?"

All the ninjas looked at each other before Nya shook her head. "I'm sorry, Princess. They didn't make it."

Harumi felt tears spring into her eyes, the sadness overcoming her body. "Once again, I am alone."

Lloyd gave the princess a reassuring smile. "You're with us now. And you have us. And me." He whispered that last part to the princess, though Garmadon heard it and smiled.d.

Garmadon wrapped an arm carefully around his son, trying not disturb his injuries. He then replied, "I promise you, Harumi. We'll find the people who responsible for this. They are _not_ going to get away."

* * *

Right after the Destiny's Bounty had left Ninjago City behind, Lloyd was dragged to his father's room, who wanted to tend the wounds he had gotten as soon as possible. Now, the green ninja was shirtless and sitting on his bed while Garmadon was trying to clean the burn on his shoulder. Lloyd winced at the pain that caused him to spasm a little.

Garmadon concentrated, a soft golden light emanating from his hand as he put it lightly on his son's back. Lloyd instantly relaxed, the burn neutralizing until it had faded to a dull pain. He then worked on the bloody cut Ultra Violet gave him, and it eventually disappeared. Once he was finished, he grabbed the first aid kit and began cleaning and bandaging the minor cuts.

When the father was finally done, he gave Lloyd soft green pjs-a thin hoodie and sweatpants-to put on. After Lloyd finished changing, Garmadon noticed his son trembling and pulled him close protectively. "There, there...You're okay now..."

"Thanks dad..." Lloyd smiled tiredly at his father, laying his head on his broad shoulders. His eyes then teared up, the emotions he had been pushing back finally resurfacing. He couldn't hold back a sob as he moved to his father's chest, seeking comfort.

"Of course... _Shh...let it out...it's okay...you're safe now...everything will be alright, little one..."_ Garmadon soothingly whispered, rocking Lloyd so gently and stroking his soft hair.

" _D-Daddy...I'm s-so sorry...I-I acted like a m-monster back there..."_ Lloyd choked out from his sobs, burying his face into his hands. He felt too ashamed to look into Garmadon's eyes, shaking and trembling.

"Oh, Lloyd... It's not your fault...You weren't in control..." Garmadon cupped a hand on Lloyd's face, making him look up, and cradled it like when he was a baby. "I'm right here... I'll always be with you... I'll always protect you... _no matter what happens..._ "

" _T-Thank you..."_ Lloyd snuggled deeper into his father's chest, feeling content in his arms. A yawn escaped as the last of his tears trickled down his puffy cheeks. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but couldn't and let them fall.

Garmadon noticed his son's exhaustion and put him down gently on the bed, wrapping a fluffy blanket over him. He smiled as his son gave a cute tiny smile and snuggled deeper into the furry bristles brushing his skin, becoming more drowsy.

"Of course...now rest...you earned it...I'll stay beside you... _always..._ " Garmadon gently whispered as he settled into his bed, running a hand through his son's soft hair.

" _Aisuruhito,"_ Garmadon whispered, _"Watashi wa anata no sekai no naniyori mo anata o aishiteimasu... Watashi wa anata o ushinaitaku arimasen... Anata wa watashi ni totte daijidesu. Watashi wa tada... Anata to issho ni itai dakedesu eien ni... Anata wa watashi ga imamade kangae rareta ijō ni watashi o kanji sasemasu... Soshite, watashi wa anata o aishiteimasu... Watashi wa anata o aishiteimasu, watashi no musuko... Son'nani..._ " (Dearest one, I love you more than anything else in this world... I don't want to lose you... You mean so much to me and I just...I just want to be with you forevermore... You make me feel more than I ever thought possible... _And I love you..._ I love you, my son... _So much..._ )

He waited until his son was fast asleep, and wrapped an arm around his child, whispering sweet nothings into his ear for a moment before dozing off as well.


	9. Tensional Revelations

**Elina: Here's another long chapter for 'Alternate Reality.'**

 **Zena: Yeah! We died inside writing this! You'll see why.**

* * *

It was around the late afternoon when Lloyd had finally woke up. As much as he had wanted to continue sleeping, he could hear the others' footsteps walking around the Bounty. They must have woken up as well.

"Good morning, little one." Garmadon spoke sweetly.

Lloyd turned to see his father sitting up, kindly smiling down at him. It made the energy master smile back at him. He sat up as well and leaned into his father's chest, wrapping his arms around him.

"Morning, father." Lloyd spoke ever so softly, his joyful expression fading.

This caused Garmadon to hold his child close. "You seem worried. What's bothering you, my angel?"

Lloyd sighed. "I have a bad feeling about today and I don't know why…"

"Lloyd…" Garmadon tightened his hold on his child and stroked his hair. " _Everything will be alright…_ I don't what's going to happen, but we don't have control over destiny… But I pray that things don't turn for the worst…"

Lloyd just nodded softly, agreeing with his father's words. He thought about what happened last night, and tears pricked his eyes as he remembered everything from last night: his close untimely death, the royal family's death, his near loss of humanity.

Garmadon noticed his child's depressing face and gently brushed the tears off his eyes. "There's something else...what's wrong?"

"J-Just, last night was so overwhelming...I acted unlike myself...I failed the team and the royal family...I even nearly _died_ all night… I'm just... _so scared… I just...feel like a failure..._ " Lloyd couldn't say anymore as he broke down into tears and started sobbing into his father's chest.

"Oh Lloyd... _Lloyd Montgomery… My little angel… Shhh...Shhh…_ " Garmadon whispered sweet nothings his son's hair, while caressing it ever so softly. " _You are_ not _a failure… You are the most sweetest and hard-working person I've ever known… None of those things that happened were your fault… I promise… Nothing will ever happen to you...not under my watch..."_ Garmadon rocked his child gently, pressing a tender kiss atop his son's head.

With those words, Lloyd finally found the willpower to calm down. He looked up at his father and gave a kind smile. "Thank you, dad… _I love you…_ " He snuggled into Garmadon's arms, feeling content.

" _I love you too, my child…_ "

* * *

The ninjas were all parking the _Destiny's Bounty_ to Spinjago, while Harumi watched it from the deck. She was wearing the green overalls she wore the other night when she and Lloyd fed the orphans and bonded. She had her hood up, wanting to conceal herself at the moment, while she observed the large village that towered before her from the dock-like base.

The princess turned around and saw Lloyd sitting on the seats, not wearing his uniform but a light green hoodie and jeans. The gi was in his hand as he was trying to patch it up and clean up the blood that got on it. That part made Harumi inwardly wince.

She slowly walked over to the green ninja and sat next him on the steps. She didn't know what to do now beside wait for the ship to park so everyone can get off.

Getting tired of the silence, Harumi decides to start a conversation, "So this is where we will be staying?"

"Yeah, it's safest here since we're the only ones who know how to get to the top quickly." Lloyd stated as he patched up another tear. Harumi turned to the sky and seemed to have gone to her thoughts, which the green ninja believed that she was just glad to be safe from the chaos now.

Once Lloyd finished sewing the last cut on his gi, he folded it into fourths. He then got up and offered Harumi a hand. She politely accepted it and they both went up to the control room, hand-in-hand.

When they reached the top, the others were busy working around the room. Garmadon and Morro were the only one closest to the two. The destruction elemental glanced up, softly smiling at his son.

Morro smirked at the two and then leaned close to Lloyd, "You may want to look down before the others do." Lloyd looked at his cousin in confusion and then looked down as Morro told him to.

And saw he was still holding Harumi's hand.

Blushing really hard, he immediately retreated it back while mumbling, "Sorry Rumi…" Harumi just giggled while Garmadon and Morro snickered, making Lloyd's face glow like a stoplight now.

The others came over soon enough as Lloyd's face was starting to dim now.

"You have all been so gracious to take me in since our palace was...taken away." Harumi sighed sadly, making Lloyd placed his arm around the princess in sympathy.

"It's okay…" Lloyd whispered. "We're ninjas. We do good, not evil." he smiled.

"Speaking of which, we should think up a plan on finding out more on the Sons of Garmadon. We know very little about them, and yet they have already proved their dastardly capabilities." Zane notes, referring to last night's robbery.

Lloyd's father shuddered at the organization's name. His thoughts flashed back to the moment when Ultra Violet deliberately tried to kill his own child, and he just couldn't understand _why_ in his father's name they were always targeting him. Tears pricked his eyes as the memories flooded his mind.

Garmadon's thoughts were interrupted by Lloyd's voice. "Well, the police commissioner emailed me that the biker I saved the night they broke in Borg's Tower is getting interrogated right now. He said that they're having a really difficult time getting answers out of him other than revealing to be with the Sons of Garmadon."

"So how are we gonna get anything out him now?" Kai asked, sighing in frustration.

Lloyd thought about it for a second before remembering something his uncle did. "I think I know just the person. Dad, you remember who I'm talking about, right?"

Garmadon knew exactly who his son was referring to.

"Indeed, son. I believe it's time to reunite with an old family friend."

* * *

The ninja had gotten back onto the _Bounty_ , and they all went back to downtown Ninjago City. Nya stated she would stay back in Spinjago and look out for Harumi while the rest would go to the shop Lloyd was referring to.

The Kamiare Family went in, along with Jay, while the others stayed outside since the shop was pretty small. As they stepped into the building, they found themselves in a tiny yet cozy shop with a somewhat long counter and a huge assortment of teas behind them.

"Hello, is Mystaké here?" Garmadon called out.

They all then turned to the sound of a ladder creaking as an elderly woman came down from it. She wore a hat similar to what Wu used to wear before he disappeared, and wears a sweater and khaki pants.

"Never heard of her." The woman snapped, turning around when she saw the ninjas and sensei.

"Oh, Sensei Garmadon, my apologies. I didn't recognize your voice. It has been ages since I last saw you." She noticed the teens behind the sensei and widened her eyes. "Lloyd, Morro, and Elsa, you have all grown so much since the last time I saw you three!"

"It's great to see you again, Mystaké." Lloyd bowed respectfully.

"You as well, Lloyd, and still the gentleman I see. That's glad."

"Yes, it is great to see you again, Mystaké. But right now, we have urgent matters we need to take care of. We seek-"

"The Tea of Truth! Impatient as usual, Garmadon. Glad some things haven't changed."

"She's good." Jay pointed out.

"But be forewarned, the truth can be... _dangerous!_ " Garmadon bit his lip, knowing exactly what she meant.

"And she also seems creepy." Jay said, hiding behind Morro.

"Par for a course from a mystical tea shop." The wind master pointed out.

"I'll go see if I have some in the back. And whatever you do, don't. Touch. _Anything_."

As she went in to get the tea, Jay whispered, "Like I said, cree-pee."

"You get used to it." Morro pointed out, with the others, even Garmadon, nodding in agreement.

As Mystaké came back out, Lloyd noticed in the room there was a painting of a dragon and some sort of demon on the wall.

"Mystaké, wait. That painting…" Garmadon looked at where his son was indicating, and his throat tightened once more.

"Ah, yes. The Oni and the Dragon… A tale as old as time, even before Ninjago was born. But you are not ready for that tale." Mystaké explains.

"Actually, Mystaké" Garmadon spoke up, his face full of anxiousness. "I think it _is_ time."

Lloyd looked at his father worrifully, while the others glanced each other in curiosity. Mystaké looked at Garmadon with wide eyes, "Are you sure, Sensei Garmadon?"

"Positive."

Lloyd, realizing something was about to happen, took the tea from Mystaké and handed it to the master of lightning. "Jay, can you give the tea to the others outside and tell them to do the interrogation without us?" He nodded and went out for a minute before coming back empty handed.

Mystaké opened the beaded curtains as Garmadon and the ninjas go in. "Come, my children. In order to hear the tale, you must...drink the tea."

* * *

Cole, Zane, and Kai all arrived at the police station with the Tea of Truth in hand. They asked the police officers to bring in two cups of normal tea. One for Cole, who would interrogate the criminal, and one for the crook. And the latter would have the Tea of Truth in his.

"This one holds the Tea of Truth," Zane looked down to his left hand grip, "And the other one is for you, Cole."

"Haha, nothing like good-old detective work." Cole smirked.

"How come I can't interrogate the criminal? I can be persuasive." Kai demanded, still a bit upset that Cole would be the interrogator.

"Yeah, but you tend to lose your cool more times than Elsa reads a new book." Cole points out.

All of a sudden, loud yelling could be heard from behind the three. They all turned just as a man in cuffs started running away from two police officers. He crashed into Cole, making the two cups fly out of his hand. As he tried to catch them again, Zane used his ice powers to stop the crook from escaping.

Cole caught the cups in time, but he ended up juggling them before he got them firm in his hands.

"Oh man, nice catch." Kai let out a breath in relief.

"Yep, and not a single drop out of place." Cole boasted.

"Are you two ready?" Zane asked as the three reached the door to the interrogation room.

"Uh…" Cole looked at the teas, wondering if it got swapped. Not taking any chances, he switched it around before looking up to the nindroid, "Of course."

The three guys entered the room and stared into the one person who asked, "Who turned off the heat?" His white helmet was off, revealing long shaggy white hair with a black stripe in the front and a stubble beard around his face. His suit was also off, revealing a pink and blue biker outfit and black leather jeans.

"Luke Cunningham," Zane calmly revealed the crook's real name.

"Otherwise known as the Man in the White Mask." Cole stated as he came over, going right across the table from Luke. Kai went and sulked in the corner, acting like a tough brute.

"We would like to ask you questions regarding who you work for, Luke." Zane narrowed his eyes, his calm demeanor no longer there.

"And I want a pepperoni pizza and some chocolate ice cream, so I guess we're both not getting what we want." Luke remarked slyly.

"Well, we may not have any of those, but we do have a cup of hot tea that could warm you up." Cole placed one of the cups and slide it to Luke.

"I ain't thirsty." Luke denied.

Cole just takes a sip of his own cup and moaned over it, "Mm-hm, sure warms me up. You should really try it."

"I told you, I ain't talkin."

Cole slammed the table with the cup. "Drink it!"

"No!"

"Ah, don't you get it? If you don't drink the Tea of Truth, we won't get any answers out of you!" Cole immediately covered his mouth as he realized what he just said. The other two ninjas gasped as well from the leaked information.

"You tryin' to trick me?" Luke asked, slowly realizing what just nearly happened.

"Cole, I think you drank the wrong cup!" Zane pointed out.

"Way to go, cool head." Kai sarcastically remarked.

"I see that now," Cole replied in a strained voice, "But in full disclosure, I am trying my best to look like I didn't."

Cole and Luke went into a staring contest as the former struggled to keep his mouth shut from spilling anything. Silence continued on as the two men tried to break the other one.

Finally, Cole spoke out in distress, "It's not working, is it?"

"Nope. You actually looked like someone who had to use the bathroom." Kai chuckled.

"Shut up, Kai. I haven't made that kind of reaction since I've been in Marty Oppenheimer's last year when I had to sing, which I have a huge fear of." Cole squeaked and covered his mouth in shock.

"Ha, so you _can't_ tell a lie, huh?" Luke gave a nasty smirk, looking pleased himself. "Then I guess _I_ have control over the interrogation."

"I'm not gonna tell you _anything_." Cole spoke firmly

"Too bad. Now tell me, where are you hiding the mask?" Luke demanded, now taking charge.

"It's up on top of the tallest mountain north of Ninjago City in Spinjago." Cole quickly covered his mouth, but it doesn't stop him. "Which is also where Princess Harumi is. And the Mask of Deception is below the base, which can be accessed from either Garmadon's room or the bookcase from the hangout. Gah!"

"Cole, stop talking!" Kai exclaimed, now moving to stand next to the struggling master of earth.

"You're giving away all our secrets!" Zane exclaimed.

"I CAN'T LIE!" Cole shouted in reply.

"Hahaha, too easy. Now what sort of powers does the green ninja have?" This time, Cole struggled harder to keep that secret. If the Sons of Garmadon knew about Lloyd's potential, not only would they gain an upper hand, but Cole would have to face the wrath of Garmadon.

"Mmmmmm, he has the element of either energy or green light, or I don't know. It's like all our powers rolled into one. And he has the potential of having the same amount of power as his grandfather, whose also the creator of the land and the First Spinjitzu Master." Cole this time screamed as he realized he exposed too much.

"Zane, Kai, knock me out! It'll be better than what Garmadon could do to me!" Cole shrieked.

"And why _would_ he care?" Luke asked skeptically.

" _Why wouldn't he?!_ He's extremely overprotective of his actual son, and even more so because of your group! They nearly killed him last night, and he traumatized them in return! And now he's gonna kill me for putting Lloyd in _more danger!_ " Cole screamed, falling to his knees trembling.

Luke just laughed in enjoyment, happy for what he accomplished. "Man, wait till the gang from Laughy's hear about this!"

"Laughy's? Do you mean the karaoke club on the South Side?" Zane asked, now calm once more. Luke chuckles died down as he realized what he just said.

"Ha ha! Who's the sucker now? Let's get out of here before I expose something worse like-" Kai immediately covered Cole's mouth before he could _actually_ reveal more secrets.

"Hold on, before we go, we need one more question answered." Kai stated before he uncovered Cole's mouth and slammed his hands onto the table. "Tell us about the Sons of Darkness right now."

"Hmph, how would I know? I thought you guys would know, considering they have been literally under your nose this whole time over the year!" Luke remarked with suspicion in his tone.

"Technically, we've been busy trying to find Sensei Wu after he went missing from the Great Devourer last year-mph." Zane this time covered Cole's mouth to stop him from talking again.

"Besides, why don't you know about them if you're working for them?" Kai asked demandingly.

Luke only glared in annoyance and sighed. "I don't know much about them, but they do come to the club once in a while, and tonight is one of them."

"Well that was easy. Why did you tell us that when you're supposed to be a loyal member?" Kai asked slyly.

"Eh, you know about Laughy's. Thought I warn you if you're thinking of going over there, which is a bad idea."

"What do you mean 'warn' us?" Zane asked.

"They have skills, powers, brains. Why do you think they evaded every capture over the year? And when they want something, they get it no matter what. Like the masks." Luke's voice grew dark as he explained the organization.

"Man. Well, thanks anyway. Have fun rotting in jail." Kai remarked as the three began leaving the room.

"Actually, I'm being released today, so thank _you_ for your informations." The three stopped in their tracks, shock at what they heard.

"WHOSE DUMB IDEA WAS TO RELEASE A GOON FROM A DANGEROUS CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION?!" Cole shrieked.

* * *

Mystaké poured tea into the four teens' cups while Garmadon was staring into the painting deep in thought.

He sighed softly and began to tell the Kamiare children and Jay the legend of the Oni and the Dragon:

"Long before time had a name, there was the Realm of the Oni and the Dragon; the Dragon had the power to create, while the Oni had the power to destroy. Their war was never-ending. But a child arrived, born of both worlds. The child understood the power of both: without one you could not have the other. But when the Oni and the Dragon fought over which side the child should choose, the child abandoned their world to start a new one called...'Ninjago.'"

"Wait, father, are you saying the child born from both worlds is the First Spinjitzu Master, my _grandfather_?" Lloyd asked in shocked. Garmadon lowered his head a bit, then nodded.

"Heh, hey! You two _are_ related." Jay points out. He then gasped sharply, realizing something. "If that's the case...you're part Oni and Dragon too. And so are you, Sensei Garmadon."

"Yes...it's true, as with my brother." He let out a sigh, looking at his son with sorrow and compassion, running his fingers through Lloyd's hair. "Your Oni blood is the reason why you nearly tried to kill those bikers last night."

"Whoa, wait a second? You nearly did what now?" Jay asked in shock. Morro and Elsa also looked at Lloyd flabbergasted. The green ninja looked down in shame, tears starting to well up his eyes.

Garmadon sighed, pulling Lloyd close while stroking his hair. "Yes, but it traumatized Lloyd so much. And with all the confusion that went on last night, he didn't know how to tell you _yet_."

Mystaké spoke up. "The three Oni Masks are relics from the First Realm, and they wield tremendous powers… The power of vengeance. The power to decieve. The power to hate." The air in the room seemed to have grown thick from the revelation of the masks' powers.

"Tell me...what happens when the three masks are united?" Lloyd asked.

"You cannot let that happen!" Mystaké called out. The Kamiare Family and Jay all looked at each other.

"Please...tell us." Lloyd urged.

"Resurrection," Mystaké stated as the shadow covers her eyes. "They will have the power to bring back the First Spinjitzu Master's greatest adversary, Yakunan, also known as the Overlord."

Silence had fallen over everyone in the room like a cloud shadowing the sun. Jay doesn't even speak, which was a new one for everyone. The only sound that could be heard was the master of lightning dropping the cup in shock and Lloyd's own heartbeat increasing.

"T-Then...the Ultimate Battle…" Lloyd stuttered in shock and anxiety, his fingers fiddling with his own cup. He then felt his father's hand gently rub his back, coaxing him to calm down.

"Don't worry, son. I'll help you through this…" Garmadon assured, never taking his hand off his son.

"Don't be so sure, Sensei Garmadon. There is another power the masks could do." Garmadon immediately looked up, curious on what Mystaké was referring to. "it will also begin the process of your true potential."

"M-My true potential? Wh-What do you mean?" Garmadon asked in apprehension.

"You have a dormant power within you, Garmadon. With it, you would have the power to destroy _and_ create like your father." Garmadon knew that already.

"But... there's a price. The masks…they will change you. Corrupt you. You won't be the very person we all recognize. There will be no light left in your heart, and–"

"M-Mystaké, that's enough…" Garmadon choked a sob back, knowing full well what that pertained: killing his own son. That was something he strictly forbade himself to do for the sake of their bond. " _Please… No more…_ "

Lloyd could sense the devastation coming off his own father. He wrapped his arms around Garmadon and held him close.

"I-I love you, Lloyd… More than anything else in the world..." Garmadon sobbed as he embraced his son back. "I don't want to have to be the one to end your life…" His body shook as his cries grew stronger. "I really just don't…"

"D-Don't turn evil… _Please…_ " Lloyd begged his father.

"I love you so immensely. I just...I just want to stay here with you forever... That is all I ask... Why…?! Just _why_ is destiny so set on torturing me…?! Why can't I stay with you forever?! I would rather be with minimal power...than achieve my true potential by k-killing you… _This is just so infuriating… Don't leave me…_ Please..." Garmadon was unable say any more as he choked at his last words and bursted into heavy sobs, clutching his child tighter.

He just couldn't take it.

* * *

The group left the tea shop and returned to Spinjago on their elemental dragons. No one talked, not even motormouth Jay, who were all so concerned for Lloyd and his father.

They all landed on the dragon bay they made when they still had their dragons and the Ultra Dragon before it disappeared. Nya and Harumi were waiting for them, having seen the group fly past the windows a moment ago. When the five ninjas landed and dissipated their dragons, they went over to greet the girls.

"Hey guys, welcome back." Nya greeted the Kamiare Family and her boyfriend.

Harumi just smiled shyly, but then noticed Lloyd's despondent expression. "What happened?"

Lloyd looked up to the princess, his eyes filled with sorrow and fear. "T-The Sons of Garmadon aren't our worst enemy right now. They want to bring the Overlord back from the dead…" He choked back a sob but still stayed strong. "...and turn my father pure evil…"

Silence fell among the group for a few moments, with the only sound being of the trees' leaves rustling and the wind blowing. They were then brought out of their thoughts by the noise of flapping wings coming up to the bay.

"Hey, guys. We're back!" They all turned and see Kai, Cole, and Zane on their dragons, with the fire ninja who called down to them.

"Hey, how did the interrogation go?" Lloyd asked, hoping for some good news could break everyone out of the dark funk.

Cole hesitated and seemed pretty nervous as he twiddled his fingers and avoided eye contacts. Lloyd thought, for a second, that they didn't get anything out of Luke at all, but Zane answered for the earth master.

"We found out that the Sons of Garmadon hangs out at Laughy's, the karaoke club at the South Side of Ninjago City. There are even said to be some members of the Sons of Darkness that hangs out there."

"We can find out when they're coming and try to find more information about both groups." Kai finished for the ice master.

"Good, now let's get inside and come up with a strategy. And possibly take it easy for a bit, considering what we _all_ went through." Everyone nodded and parted ways into Spinjago.

* * *

Cole sat around the couch, fumbling his fingers as he thought about what happened at the interrogation. How could he be so stupid to reveal so much? How is he gonna tell everyone about this? All because he drank the wrong tea!

Fear began to grasp his heart and mind, as he wondered how everyone, especially _Garmadon,_ would react when they found out how much he told. He hadn't felt this much pressure like this since his mother passed away and his father became obsessed with making him a dancer.

"Cole?" The distressed ninja turned to the voice of his best friend and brother, Jay. "Is everything okay?" The master of earth's throat tightened at his friend's concern. The blue ninja might be annoying and talkative and joked at the worst times, but he was also light-hearted and sensitive and compassionate.

"I'm so dumb…" Cole whispered softly to himself, placing his head in his hand.

"What happened?" Jay asked concernedly. He goes over to Cole and put a hand on his shoulder.

"You know how we split up? You and the Kamiares were staying at the tea shop while me, Zane and Kai went to interrogate Luke Cunningham? With the Tea of Truth to get him to talk?"

"Yeahhhhh." Jay dragged out the word, not liking where this was going.

"Well...I...messed up and gave him the wrong cup." Cole quickly answered, lowering his head in shame.

"Wait, what?! So _you_ had the Tea of Truth?!" Jay shrieked.

"Yeah...now shhh...don't yell. We can't get anyone's attention now." Cole shushed Jay, covering his mouth.

Unfortunately for the two, someone _was_ listening to them. Garmadon had noticed Cole acting weird and was going to check on the two.

"And...I made the mistake of... revealing a lot about our team," the earth elemental added weakly.

"You WHAT!?" Jay shrieked through Cole's mouth. Garmadon halted his step when he heard the lightning ninja shrieked, now concern about what's happening.

Cole pressed his face deeper into his hand, struggling to keep the tears at bay, with Jay rubbing his friend's back and staying by his side. When a few minutes had passed between the two, Jay decided to speak up and ask the question he knew the others might ask soon. "Want to tell me what you revealed? We're gonna need to know so we could thwart their new plan."

Realizing that the normally air-headed ninja was right, Cole looked up and took a deep breath, praying that Jay would forgive him for what information he leaked. "At first, all I revealed was some personal things." Jay's reaction makes Cole quickly answered, "About me, of course. Nothing about you or anyone else...exactly."

"What do you mean?" Jay asked.

Not wanting to reveal what he revealed about one of the ninja, he quickly covered it up with another secret, "Well, he first asked where the mask was, and I told them it was on Spinjago. And I told them it was on the tallest mountain closest to Ninjago City, as well as the fact that Harumi is here too." Jay's mouth dropped in shock, unable to believe what he heard.

"Cole! Are you serious?!" Jay shrieked again, waving his hands in shock.

"Then, I also told them that the Mask of Deception was here as well, and it was in the secret room below the base." Cole answered, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Coooolllee!" Jay whined, facepalming himself.

"And...that's not the worst of it. And it answers the revealing someone's personal thing." Cole swallowed nervously, fingering his hand.

He takes a deep breath and spoke quickly, "Let's just say that the Sons of Garmadon know about Lloyd's powers now."

Garmadon's heart sank at Cole's revelations. The Sons of Garmadon knew about his son's potential. He could be a bigger target than he was now! Anger began to boil within him, blinding his mind from his sanity.

Before he could stop himself, he charged right through the door and yelled, "YOU DID _WHAT?!_ "

Cole immediately shrieked and jumped from the couch along with Jay, accidentally knocking the table along with it. Before he could get away, Garmadon ran forward and shoved the earth elemental against the wall.

"I-I told them a-about Lloyd's powers and–" Cole stutteringly tried to explain. Unfortunately, he shut up immediately when he saw the sensei's eyes started to ominously glow purple.

"WHY IN MY FATHER'S NAME WOULD YOU TELL THEM ABOUT _MY SON'S_ POWERS?! THEY COULD USE THIS TO THEIR ADVANTAGE! _THEY KNOW WHERE WE ARE NOW! THEY COULD EASILY KIDNAP LLOYD AND HARUMI! MY SON COULD_ DIE _BECAUSE OF YOUR IGNORANCE!_ " Garmadon screamed at Cole's face, getting many more people's attention. His glowing purple eyes changed to red and his teeth became sharper.

Cole gasped, looking with wide eyes at Garmadon's hands which were emitting purple energy. And more were coiling around Garmadon's body and around him. _Shoot._

"Sensei Garmadon, to be fair, Cole accidentally drank the Tea of Truth, and he couldn't control himself from answering Luke's questions." Jay tried to defend his friend while slowly getting closer to the enraged elder to pry him off.

"SHUT IT, JAY! COLE STILL GAVE AWAY OUR LOCATION AND MY SON'S POWERS!" Garmadon shouted, his temper growing more and more out of control.

"Well, they also do know some things about Cole, so you don't have to get that upset!"

"HE STILL GOT US EXPOSED! WHOSE IDEA WAS IT TO EVEN USE THE TEA OF TRUTH?!" Unknowingly, Garmadon was starting to become corrupted in his mind, being filled with darkness and sadistic thoughts.

"Look, Lloyd was the one who came up with the plan anyway and was just–"

" **NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED BECAUSE OF THAT DUMB IDEA! _I'LL KILL HIM FOR THIS!_** " Garmadon's voice had deepened and became hoarse, as his powers further spread throughout the room now.

A quiet sob came from the other side of the room, making only Jay, who was ironically calmed at the moment, turn to see the one person he wished wasn't here.

Lloyd had heard the loud shouting while he was talking with Harumi and Nya about what happened. Being the kind person he was, Lloyd went down to check on the commotion. And he came in in time to see his father shoving Cole to the wall and shouting at him.

And it became worse when he heard his _own father_ called him dumb and would kill him.

He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. A few hours ago, his father assured him he would protect him. That he would always be by his side. That he _loved_ him.

Lloyd had enough of the chaos and screamed at the top of his lungs, "ENOUGH ALREADY! _"_ Immediately, Lloyd let out the power that had been roaring inside him, and a large flash illuminated the room.

The next thing he knew, everyone he loved was floating in the room while green wispy energy were floating around them. Once the light dissipated, everyone was still floating and they turned to the green ninja, who was trying to keep himself composed.

" _I can't_ believe _you guys!_ " Lloyd admonished his friends and even his own father, snapping Garmadon out of the dark state. Though the sensei's anger was still boiling over him.

"SHUT UP, LLOYD! THIS DOESN'T INVOLVE YOU!"

" _But you said you were going to_ kill me!" He choked back a sob from being let out and struggled to stay strong.

Garmadon let out a sharp gasp of pain as the darkness finally leaves his heart and mind, leaving behind guilt and remorse. He couldn't believe what his son just said. Did he really say he would _kill_ his own child? What was happening to him?

As the master of destruction tried to process what happened, Lloyd turned back to Cole and Jay, who both looked ashamed and nervous.

"Lloyd, I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to ruin everything..." Cole apologized, tears falling from his eyes. No one had ever seen the stone-faced ninja cry before. Not since he revealed his mother's death.

"He's...not the only one who messed up…" Jay calls out quietly, also twiddling his fingers. "At the palace, I may have accidentally, indirectly called you a party pooper… I'm so sorry."

Lloyd had his eyes closed, his blonde hair covering his face.

No one said anything, the tension and silence so thick you could cut a knife through it. Finally, Lloyd spoke up, struggling to keep his sorrow in control.

"Cole, the gang would have found out about our base and my powers anyway. The important thing is we got their hideout and a general of the Sons of Darkness's location." Lloyd's voice was so quiet and emotionless that it scared Cole and made Jay believe his friend's oni side was coming out as well.

"And Jay, I'm not offended. I know you were just joking. I'm used to it." Jay relaxed a bit, the guilt leaving his shoulder. But the worry never left his green brethren.

Before Garmadon could look up to his son, Lloyd had fled the room, now too overwhelmed to say anymore. Everyone fell to the ground as the green ninja left, weakening his hold on them.

Garmadon's chest clenched in overwhelming pain and guilt. The memories from a few minutes ago came back to him, and he started to cry.

 _What have I done..._

* * *

Garmadon had left the living room, and was slowly walking back to his own room. He wanted time for himself to process what just happened. He just wanted to be away from everyone for what he almost did.

But as he passed his son's room, he could hear loud sobbing and hiccuping from within. His heart swelled with emotion and guilt, despite the coldness he was slowly getting consumed in, and he went to check on his child. "Lloyd? M-May I come in?" He knocked on the door.

He didn't get a proper answer, which made the father more worried. He decided to take the initiative to open the door himself.

Garmadon's heart broke when he saw the sight before him. His son was curled up into a ball and had his face buried in his knees. His whole body was visibly trembling and shaking so hard that it looked like he would literally fall apart any minute. He could hear the loud sniffling coming from the young man and can see some tear stains on Lloyd's pants.

"S-Son…" Garmadon whispered, tears beginning to come into his own eyes.

A squeak escaped from Lloyd and he looked up to see his father. Remembering what had happened only moments ago, he backed away fearfully, afraid his father _was_ going to do it.

"I'm _not_ going to hurt you… _Please_ …calm down..." Garmadon felt hurt that his son was starting to distance himself from his father, but he couldn't blame him for it. He acted like someone Lloyd didn't recognize.

He reached his arm to his son, but Lloyd shrieked again and his father's heart broke more.

" _Lloyd Montgomery...please...I love you, little one…"_ Garmadon's voice was practically breaking at this point. He just wanted to hold his son close to him. To whisper sweet nothings into his soft hair once more.

Lloyd slowly looked up to his father, still afraid, and he gasped at the broken face on Garmadon. Guilt welled up his heart, feeling bad for hurting his father's feelings. He carefully wrapped his arms tightly around Garmadon. "I-I'm s-sorry, dad. It's j-just, y-you said y-you were gonna _k-kill m-me…_ "

" _I-I didn't mean it… My Oni side took over and I couldn't help it… I was_ so _worried about you and the fact that you could be_ at risk _that my anger completely took over… I just…_ I am so sorry, Lloyd…" He couldn't suppress his emotions any longer as he returned the embrace and sobbed into his dear child's hair. "Please… Forgive me…"

Lloyd softly nodded. He leaned tearfully against his father's chest and cried in relief. "Dad...be careful next time… _I love you, father… So much…_ "

Garmadon nodded and his sobs grew heavier, tightening his hold on his child. _"I love you too, my child…_ I'd be _shattered_ if I lost you… _More so if I lost you to m-myself…"_ The destruction elemental held his son even tighter. " _I'm so worried about you, Lloyd... I don't want you hurt... I don't want our family torn apart... I_ don't _want to lose you…_ _I don't want to_ ever _lose you..._ "

The two held onto each other for moments on end, never loosening their grips. Finally, they had the willpower to pull apart, tears still fresh on their cheeks. Garmadon gently grabbed Lloyd's chin and made him look up to see his emerald eyes.

"You better now?" Garmadon softly asked, which Lloyd nodded. "Good. Now you better pack your stuff. We need to leave the base, now that we have been exposed. Just take the essentials and your favorite things, and then we head to the Destiny's Bounty for our next plan. I'll go tell the others"

"Alright." Lloyd answered. His father smiled and pressed a loving kiss on his son's forehead. He then got up and leave the room, glad their bond was repaired before it got worse.


	10. Infiltration

**Elina: Sorry it took longer to write this chapter.**

 **Zena: Yeah. I just started school so I'm juggling that as well.**

 **Elina: And I'm about to start school soon and I might be publishing my original stories soon, so the story might take longer as well.**

 **Zena: And emotional! You guys are in for roller coaster ride!**

 **Elina: Also, there's an author note that you HAVE to read at the bottom of this chapter, so don't skip over it! Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

As the sun began to set into the mountainous horizon, the _Destiny's Bounty_ flew over the grassy valleys of Ninjago. Wind blew against the sails, leading onward to the unknown distance that lay ahead.

All the ninjas, their sensei, and the princess were all sitting around in the control room, trying to think up of a plan for tonight's infiltration to Laughy's.

"So we know that the Sons of Garmadon hang out at Laughy's when it's night outside. And the Sons of Darkness occasionally goes there, like tonight. Now all we need to do is find out who goes in and tries to find more information on the Sons of Darkness themselves. Did I leave anything out?" Lloyd asked as he finish reviewing what they learned.

"Yeah." Cole replied, still feeling guilt over the revealed information.

Garmadon sighed in guilt at this, putting a hand on his shoulder, deciding to have a moment with him alone. "I'm sorry for lashing out at you like that earlier today, but you know as well as I that Lloyd means so much to me. I was so frightened... _so scared... I could've..._ "

"But you _didn't_." Cole insisted, his voice firm as usual.

Garmadon smiled relievedly. "Thank you...and I'm _so sorry_."

"I'm sorry about what happened in Mystaké's... I can't imagine what must've been going through your head..."

"I'd rather not go into detail about it... Let's just say the Ultimate Battle is coming sooner than I thought."

"Yeah... Lloyd was staring into the horizon an hour ago, stressed by all that. And I saw Harumi have a moment with him. I think they're meant for one another."

"All I want is the best for him. For him to express himself however he wishes. For him to be safe and loved. And I knew your mother personally. She would have wanted the same for you."

Cole smiled sadly. "Well, we should probably go back to the others. They're waiting for us."

Garmadon nodded, knowing his son might be wondering where they were. They returned to the bridge.

Lloyd smiled softly. "Where were you?"

"Just having a moment with Cole... The outburst struck me hard... I adore you... _don't leave me..._ " Garmadon told his child in a somewhat distressed manner.

"Me too, father." Lloyd stated, keeping the tears at bay.

"So, do we have a plan?" Cole asked to the leader.

"Well, we were thinking of some of us disguising ourselves as members of the Sons of Garmadon and infiltrate the karaoke bar that way." Lloyd recapped what they had been talking about when his father and the earth elemental were gone.

"I'll go." Cole nodded.

"So will I." Added Zane.

"And me." Morro added.

"I'm going too." Lloyd conceded firmly.

"Lloyd, _no_. It's too dangerous...please reconsider... I _don't_ want to lose you..." Garmadon begged, embracing his son tight.

Lloyd sighed, knowing his father was going to react negatively on his decision. As much as he wanted to stay in his father's embrace, feeling protected and safe, he needed to step up as leader and do this. He gently placed his hand on his father's chest, and reluctantly pulled away from his tender hold.

Lloyd looked into his father's pleading yet stern eyes with his firm ones, and spoke, "I'm sorry, father, but this is something I _have_ to do. The Sons of Garmadon _and_ Darkness are gonna be there, and they're going to need all the help they can get. Besides, the Sons of Darkness sounded like they're planning something really devious and sinister tonight. I can't let them get away with it. I can't let them resurrect the Overlord... _I can't let them corrupt you..."_ The green ninja's eyes were now starting to tear up, but he kept his face straight as he stared down at his father. "This isn't just a typical mission. _You're at stake. I have to know for myself what they're up to. I'm trying to protect you, father._ " He couldn't hold back the tears anymore as they slowly but freely flowed down his face.

Garmadon's heart clenched in guilt at his son's teary face, knowing Lloyd was trying to be strong and firm for him. And he couldn't be more proud of him. The destruction elemental softly nodded, knowing Lloyd had a point. "I'll come with you...just to make sure you're safe, alright?"

Lloyd smiled tearfully, embracing his father close. "S-Sure... _I love you so much..._ "

" _I love you too, my precious angel..._ " Garmadon whispered, meant only for Lloyd's ears. " _We'll pull through this together... I promise, my child..._ I promise..."

The others smiled at Garmadon's affection towards his child. Despite everything, they were as close as ever.

Until tonight...

* * *

Borg Tower comes into view as the _Destiny's Bounty_ began to park on the roof. Cyrus Borg himself waited with three people by his side. Two of them were scientists, wearing white lab coats and glasses.

Once the ship was parked to the side of the roof, the people that would infiltrate Laughy's got off while everyone else stayed on the ship. A while ago, Zane had contacted his girlfriend, Pixal, to create a cloaking device for Lloyd and Garmadon to disguise themselves without having to worry about giving themselves away.

"We're here." Lloyd told the group as they headed over to Cyrus Borg.

"Hello, Mr. Borg." Garmadon politely addressed the inventor.

"Hello, Garmadon." Borg smiled. "I got a message from Pixal that Zane ordered the new cloaking devices we just finished developing."

"Yeah." Lloyd nodded in confirmation. "We're trying to figure out more about those guys who stole the Mask of Vengeance."

"Good for you. I deeply appreciate it." Cyrus replied, giving them the devices, which were a single white bracelet for each of them.

"We're ninjas. It's our job." Lloyd smiled as he and his father put on their new gadgets.

When the devices were turned on, gone were the big-hearted green ninja, Lloyd, and the benevolent sensei, Garmadon. Instead, they were replaced by two frightening-looking bikers.

Lloyd's long blonde hair was now cropped and pure black with red highlights. His shining emerald eyes were now haunting amber orbs. His face was a bit more paler, he had a silver nose ring on his right nostril, and his scar had moved up to his left eye. His outfit consisted of a black short-sleeved jacket over a gray shirt, leather jeans that seemed a bit tight on him, spiked black boots, and black cuff-like accessory on his wrist, which was the disguised cloaking device.

Garmadon, on the other hand, looked more scarier than his son. His gray wavy hair was the same color as his son's disguised one now, but more spiked up and no highlights. His purple eyes were now much more darker, close to the color of a bad bruise. There were several scratches and scars all over his face, like he went through a rough war. His sensei gi was replaced with a dark purple armor with a black sleeve on one arm and none on the other.

The two turned towards each other and nearly let out sharp gasps at each other's appearance. Garmadon saw that his good-hearted angel looked more like a punk devil now, and Lloyd saw that his father looked so similar to...his corrupted form. That thought nearly brought tears to the young one's eyes.

"Glad to see the cloaking devices are working. And did you know it also comes with voice change capabilities," Cyrus added, distracting Lloyd out of his thoughts. "That way, you two will be more hidden."

"Really?" Lloyd asked as he tapped to activate it. When he spoke, his voice had a British accent, which was impossible considering the ninja's incapability to imitate voices. "Woah, this is cool, luv!" He immediately covered his mouth on what he just said and sounded like.

His father softly chuckled at his son's antics, making Lloyd's face flush in embarrassment.

"Thank you, Mr. Borg." Garmadon smiled. "Well, son, we'd better get going. The others are waiting for us."

The two got onto the _Bounty_ , where the others did await them, and were shocked at the two's new appearances.

Kai was the first to speak. "Woah, edgy, man!"

"Yeah..." Lloyd blushed a bit and rubbed the back of his head bashfully. "Not really my style, but hey, it works as a disguise."

"Well, let's get ready to infiltrate then." Morro reminded. He was wearing his black hair in a ponytail, with his green streak hidden. He had on sunglasses as well to cover his grey-green eyes. He was wearing a leather biker jacket, a white t-shirt, tight leather jeans, and biker boots.

"Yeah." Lloyd meekly nodded as he turned back to the city of Ninjago, his father standing next to him with a hand on his shoulder.. He just hoped with all his heart they get the information and get out unscathed.

He hoped...

* * *

Lloyd and his father were on the _Bounty_ with their disguises turned on. They stood on the deck, waiting for their signal to get off and into the club.

Garmadon turned to look at his son, and he frowned in concern when he saw him looking distressed. "Son, is everything alright?"

"Father... I'm terrified...what if this doesn't work...what if we get spotted? What if..." Lloyd stopped his talking, not wanting to hear anymore of the possibilities that could happen at the infiltration.

The destruction elemental ran his fingers through his son's still-soft hair, bringing him into a tight embrace. "I'm here..."

"I'm glad you decided to come along." Lloyd gave a soft smile, laying his head on his father's non-armored shoulder. His smile faded a bit as he decided to reveal what he had in his mind earlier afternoon. "In all honesty, I didn't know how I could handle it on my own. I know my cousin and my friends would be there, but we would have to split up since the club is really big."

Garmadon sighed, gently brushing his hand against where his scar was hidden. "Don't worry, son...I'll be right by your side...now and forever..." He pulled his son closer, keeping an arm around his child's shoulders. He then looked into Lloyd's now-red eyes and saw some pain hidden in there. "There's... _something else..._ "

Lloyd tensed, hesitant to tell his father what was on his mind. He felt a gentle pressure on his back and turned to see his father giving a reassuring smile.

"It's okay...you can tell me anything..." Garmadon reassured, the gentility still in his eyes, relaxing the green ninja.

"Alright." Lloyd nodded. "Back when we were at Borg's, the first time I saw your disguise...it...reminded me of your corrupted state...when...your oni side attacked Cole...and the symbol those crooks used..." Lloyd was trying his hardest to hold tears back at the memories, but unfortunately they fell to his cheeks.

" _Lloyd..."_ Garmadon whispered, brushing his son's tears away gently. " _I love you so much... I would_ never _lay a hand on you... Even if I have to choose between you, my life, my power, or even the world, you always will be so important to me, my little angel._ "

Lloyd let tears fall, touched by his father's endearing words. He wrapped his exposed arms around Garmadon's armor, and laid his head carefully on his chest. He felt his father return the embrace, making him smile in the content warmth he needed.

Harumi watched from afar, touched by the moment as well, wishing her parents could've lived longer. That they could've been just as close.

"Guys, hate to disturb your moment but we're almost there." Morro sighed.

"Alright." Garmadon nodded.

The five disguised members of the infiltrating group all gathered at the deck, preparing to drop out of the sky. They decided to split up to lessen suspicion. Lloyd, Morro, and Garmadon would take one side while Zane and Cole take the front.

Once the karaoke club was in their vicinity, the ship swiftly glided through the air and hid behind a building. Lloyd and his family members were on the left side, prepare to go to the back way. Zane and Cole were on the other side.

"You ready?" Garmadon asked to his son and nephew. Both of the guys nod while Lloyd took his father's hand for support. He gently squeezed it back in response.

"Let's do it." Cole whispered-yelled to his partners and the others on the opposite side.

In a flash, the five infiltrators jumped off the ship and began sneaking their way to the club. Zane and Cole used the dumpsters to get to the front while Lloyd, Garmadon, and Morro used the roofs and alleyways to get to another side.

Finally, they found a short line into the club, and Garmadon takes his place with Lloyd and Morro standing on either side of the disguised sensei like bodyguards.

Once they reached the jumper, he eyed the three and looked at the clipboard in his hand. "Names sir?" He sternly asked to Garmadon with a suspicious look.

"Devil Eyes, crime boss from the west of the city." Garmadon answered with a dark, serious tone in his voice. It made Lloyd and Morro inwardly flinch, but they still kept a straight face.

Garmadon turned to the two teens with a look that almost made Lloyd give away their position with a near yelp.

"These two ruffians are Scar Wylde," He looked straight into his son's amber eyes.

"And Griffin Storm." His eyes then turned to Morro.

He then faced the jumper once more. "We heard the Sons of Garmadon were here, and we came to check them out."

The jumper still eyed the three suspiciously, considering he had never really heard about a crook from the west coming here. More so to see the Sons of Garmadon.

"Never heard of you three before. Why should I even let you in?"

Lloyd inwardly tensed as the goon said that. He was scared that they could be given away. That jumper looked to be not the kind of guy who lets anyone in easily.

Garmadon noticed that and telepathically reassured him while keeping an emotionless expression at the jumper. _'I promise you...it will be alright...'_

 _'Oh, thank you father...'_ Lloyd communicated to the destruction elemental, inwardly releasing a sigh of relief.

 _'Of course... I love you..._ so much _...'_ Those words nearly made Garmadon's lip turn into a smile, but he still kept a straight face against the jumper.

After a moment, the jumper looked back at the three disguised thugs, and noticed the other crooks impatiently waiting to get in. Deciding to just move on to the next people in the line, he moved aside for them to get in, "Alright, you three may pass."

Lloyd inwardly sighed. _Thank goodness..._

The three disguised ninjas stepped into the dive, and they are bombarded with the loud noises of thugs bustling around listening to one of the thugs singing karaoke.

Garmadon pulled his son and nephew to a hidden area to talk privately. In a normal club, it would make them so suspicious. But because there are more crooks here than the Ninjago City Police Station, it was like normal activity.

"Alright, we're in." Garmadon spoke through the communicator on his wrist.

"Great, so are we." Cole replied. "We're at the front of the bar with Dareth."

"Wait, _Dareth_?" Lloyd quietly exclaimed in surprise. This caught Garmadon's and Morro's attention.

Dareth was a chubby old man that owned a dojo in Ninjago City and half the age of Garmadon and Wu. At least according to the ever-joking Kai and Jay, which resulted in two bonks from the said two sensei and a really annoyed green ninja.

Lloyd inwardly chuckled at the memory.

Zane, meanwhile, took over speaking for Cole.

"So, we found information about the two generals that attacked the palace the other night, and we are just waiting for the Sons of Darkness to show." Zane explained.

Garmadon's eyes glowed, remembering how the woman, Ultra Violet, nearly killed his son too many times. Something told Lloyd the grudge wasn't going to go away anytime soon.

"Can you tell us?" Morro asked, wanting answers about the Sons of Garmadon.

"The red one is Mr. E, a quiet and mysterious general that is pretty good technology, and the purple one is Ultra Violet, a psychotic woman who's pretty delirious."

 _Curse her..._ Garmadon muttered silently in his head. This didn't go unnoticed by his son.

 _'Dad...you okay?'_ Lloyd asked his father telepathically.

 _'How can I be? She tried to kill you several times!'_ Garmadon brought him closer and kept an arm around him protectively. He knows that if he hugged his son in a club full of heartless criminals, someone might see them and get suspicious, but it was too overwhelming for the sensei at the moment. He quickly let go before anyone could see them showing warming affection.

"So, how are we gonna get through this, Snake Jaguar?" Cole asked as he drank a boba Dareth left out for them.

"Try gaining their trust so we can get inside information." Lloyd stated through the comm.

"Scar's right. Anway, I went through about 1,542 ways to gain their trust. And there's only one way to gain their trust. But it's complicated... _and dangerous_."

"I'm Rocky Dangerbuff, and danger is in my name! Lay it on me!" Cole cockily stated as he drank his boba.

"You have to sing."

"W- _What-!_ " Cole spluttered, spitting his drink out.

 _Oh shoot...we're screwed..._ Lloyd groaned in his thoughts, remembering the last time the earth elemental sang because of a dare—his ears ended up literally bleeding, and his overprotective father banned Cole from singing in the monastery, with a microphone and a speaker, ever again.

Cole rolled his eyes. "Ugh fine. If you say so." He walked over to the stage and grabbed the microphone. "I'm Rocky Dangerbuff, and here's something mean to say!" He tossed a coin, wrapped in paper that stated the song, over at Zane who was by the jukebox. "Song number 159, pronto!"

Zane nodded and put the coin while he read the paper. The music began, but it sounded familiar.

"Wait a second, isn't that..." The song Zane chose was "Glowworm" instead of "Cream and Death." Apparently he turned on the wrong song, even though it was written on the paper. When the ice elemental looked closer, he realized Cole used the wrong paper. It was a reminder for Garmadon for a choir practice Lloyd was in five years ago.

Cole knew if he complained, he'd probably be discovered, and so would everyone else. And so he started singing.

Of course it was horrible.

"Glow little glowworm glow and glimmer, swim through the sea..."

Garmadon dragged Lloyd and Morro into the shadows once more to not listen to Cole's singing, all while covering his son's ears to prevent bleeding again.

Zane just watched his partner badly sing to the song he wished he hadn't picked out, though he kept a straight, blank expression on his face.

Meanwhile, the rest of the ninjas on the _Destiny's Bounty_ were watching from Zane's eyes, awkwardly listening to Cole's singing.

"What...is he doing?" Jay asked uncomfortably, yet trying to hide his grin.

"I don't know, but I hope it's being recorded." Kai remarked, trying to contain his laughter.

Cole's singing is then lowered to barely a whisper, much to everyone's relief, as another voice came into the monitor.

"Zane says he has a plan to get the Sons of Garmadon's trust, and that _we_ must trust him."

"Glow little glowworm glow and glimmer, swim through the sea–" Before Cole could sing—or rather shriek—another word, the music suddenly shut off, alerting all the thugs, the generals, and even the disguised ninjas.

Tension started to rise as metal-like footsteps were heard coming from the center of the room. Everyone seemed to have lost their joy and excitement, replaced with fear and seriousness in the air. Those who were closest to the source moved away to reveal a group of five people, definitely catching the ninjas' attention.

Lloyd glared at the group with disdain as he realized who they were.

 _The Sons of Darkness..._

He couldn't help but not feel surprised that they didn't look so similar to the Sons of Garmadon. Yes, they were wearing more armor on them that looked really sturdy and strong. And the colors were either dark purple, night black, or blood-red, which symbolized their status being with the Sons of Darkness.

They actually looked more frightening than the Sons of Garmadon.

Two people stood out more than the goons surrounding them. The generals of the Sons of Darkness.

The one on the left was a man that looked to be about a foot taller than Garmadon, and was much more intimidating, with his muscled body covered with nasty scars, cold blood-red eyes, nasty pale skin, and greasy black hair slicked back. He was wearing a bulky armor colored blacker than the night sky, and with some kind of weapon on the back. In other words, he looked like a deranged former military general.

The other general is a beautiful woman that looked a lot like a model, with her glossy auburn hair cascade to her waist. Her ocean eyes might be filled with charisma, but there was a hint of sadistic and cruelty within it. She was wearing a long black dress that looked fashionable yet suitable for travels and fighting, along with matching booties and jewelry.

"Madame Catty and Master Phantom!" One of the Sons of Garmadon thugs screamed in a mixture of fear and awe. Immediately, all of the crooks fell to one knees and bowed for the two generals. All except the disguised Zane and Cole, and the hidden members of the Kamiare Family.

"Oh, it is so good to see you all having fun, Sons of Garmadon!" The woman general, Catty, cooed at the crooks with an alluring voice that seemed to attract all the males. Except the ninjas of course.

"Yes, it _would_ be fun. But who are _THEY_?!" The burly man, Phantom, screamed in a _really_ loud voice that rivals even Jay's excessive screams.

"Uh, I'm Rocky Dangerbuff, and I was just singing before I was _rudely_ interrupted. So who are you people?" Cole made a comeback, causing the ninjas to flinch and the Sons of Garmadon to gasp in shock. The earth elemental looked around in confusion, wondering what was going on.

The military-like general narrowed his eyes in suspicion, then gave a smile that chilled everyone to the bones. Lloyd couldn't help but grab his father and cousin's hands and squeeze them in fear.

"I am Phantom, one of the top generals to the Sons of Darkness." The burly man started walking up to the stage and towards Cole with a sickening smile increasing. "And..." He grabbed the earth elemental and leaned towards his face. " _Your worst nightmare._ "

 _Rip!_

Phantom had ripped off Cole's disguise moustache.

" _YEEEEOOOOOOOWCCCHHH!_ " Cole shrieked, grabbing where a red mark was already forming. Unknowingly, he loosened his fake scar as it fell to the floor.

Silence had fallen onto the club, everyone freezing like statues as they stared at Cole, who stood there awkwardly.

"IMPOSTER!" one of the goons exclaimed.

"THAT'S THE NINJA WHO'S AFRAID TO SING!" Another goon, obviously Luke Cunningham, pointed out.

"GRAB HIM!" Ultra Violet ordered with a shriek. Everyone obeyed as they lunged at Cole, who defended himself with the microphone stand.

"Zane, a little help!" Cole cried out as he struggled to defend himself. Before he could even see, he got hit hard in the head by a square stool.

Zane had knocked his own comrade out!

"Find this 'Zane' and bring him too!" Zane ordered, even though he technically has no powers, but some of them seems to comply.

The other general, Catty, calmly wandered around the chaos, unfazed by it. "There could be other ninja as well. Find them!"

Lloyd gasped in shock and horror.

They were discovered!

How in his grandfather's name did the Sons of Darkness figure it out?

"We need to get out of here _now_!" Garmadon ordered as he grabbed his son's and nephew's wrists. He dragged them away from the chaos and the angered general.

The hallway was getting crowded as more and more thugs and criminals crammed their way, looking for Lloyd and his family, who were unknowingly in front of them.

But as they were searching for an escape route, something clammy grabbed Lloyd by his other wrist and pulled him back. Fear coursed through his body as he prepared to defend himself from whoever got him.

Before he could do so, however, a blinding pain surged through his whole body, making Lloyd nearly scream in anguish. Whatever it was, the next thing he knew, the green ninja was beginning to sway, slipping out of his father's grasp.

The green ninja was dragged to the opposite side of the club and away from his father. He turned around to see who got him, and his eyes bulged out to see it was a man with black streaked hair and cold purple eyes. His outfit and body told Lloyd he belonged to something he wished he didn't meet.

The Sons of Darkness.

"You best stay quiet if you know what's good for you, _imposter_!" Another man with a red Afro and beard came up in front of Lloyd with a wicked grin.

Lloyd turned away and his head fell from exhaustion, anthe source.

A tranquilizer dart.

" _SON!_ " Garmadon worriedly screamed through the chaos. He saw the dart too and was panicking now, but he was trapped in such a large crowd that he couldn't get to Lloyd in time. He was being pulled away, forcing him to sigh in defeat, knowing he would have to leave the area.

"Guys–" Lloyd is muffled before he could call out for his family. He watched in tears as his father dragged Morro through the crowd, getting further and further away from the distressed ninja. He tried to telepathically communicate to him, but his emotions had taken over.

" _FATHER!"_

No response. Garmadon was nowhere to be seen now.

The energy elemental's vision went black as the chemical from the dart drained the energy to stay awake.

Before he lost consciousness, Lloyd reached out a hand and squeaked a weak cry for his father.

" _Daddy... Don't leave me..."_

* * *

The masters of wind and destruction kept on running through the crowded hallway.

Away from the chaos.

Away from danger.

 _Away from Lloyd._

The two finally burst through the door, finally out of Laughy's and separated from the Sons of Darkness. They collapsed to the concreted ground, exhausted from the escape.

And it was only then that Garmadon noticed someone was missing. "Lloyd..." He looked back to see that his dear child was nowhere in sight. He then remembered what happened moments ago.

His heart sank as tears welled up in his eyes instinctively and in overwhelming guilt. How could he have left his child behind like that? He knew Lloyd was capable of protecting himself, but he had a bad feeling with the Sons of Darkness.

" _M-My child..._ " He turned back to the club, determination clear in his face. "We gotta go back. Lloyd's in danger! We can't leave him behind!"

As they began to rush back to Laughy's, a loud rev was suddenly heard from a close distance. The two turn, and they saw a bunch of bikers gathering in front of the club, consisting of the Sons of Garmadon.

Some of them were laughing as two of the generals from the Sons of Garmadon came out of the club. Ultra Violet was carrying someone unconscious, gagged, and tied him up onto one of the bikes.

Cole.

"We gotta split! Now let's get out of this place!" Ultra Violet ordered to the other bikers. They all got on their bikes and were prepared to head out until something stopped them in their tracks.

"Wait a second!" All of them turned to a voice they seemed to recognize, but was foreign to Garmadon and Morro. The two turned to see three more thugs come out of the club, along with someone who seemed to be shuffling.

"We got someone else! And he's a _special_ one!" A woman with cropped, dark purple hair and black lace clothings giggled.

Two of her fellow guys were dragging another person, concealed in shadows, who was tied and gagged as well. Unlike Cole, he seemed to be awake as he was struggling to break free. Nonetheless, the bikers succeeded to get him onto one of their bikes, which was more futuristic and dangerous-looking than the Sons of Garmadon's

"Who in Ninjago's name is it?" Ultra Violet asked demandingly but with much more respect. She seemed to be much more cautious with the Sons of Darkness, which surprised the ninja. They must have been really dangerous if they made the craziest woman they knew to act so calm around them.

The woman smirked, gesturing over to one of the men who near the prisoner. He nodded and grabbed onto one of the prisoner's wrists, and ripped something out of it. A blue-white flash covers the person, and when it dies down, a familiar blonde-haired, green-eyed boy took its place.

"The infamous green ninja and the _imposter_ child of Garmadon!"

" _No..._ " Sensei Garmadon stared wide-eyed in disbelief at the sight before him. The Sons of Garmadon had gotten to his child.

"HAHAHA! The Quiet One will be so happy to hear that!" Ultra Violet excitedly giggled out of control. It sickened the ninja as they watched from the roofs, out of sight.

"The Quiet One?" Garmadon repeatedly asked to himself. Could that person be in charge of the Sons of Garmadon?

Before the thugs of the Sons of Garmadon could grab the green ninja, the same woman who spoke blocked them along with the two men. "Not so fast, Ultra Violet. He's coming with us at the moment."

"What's the big idea?! He's enemy number one to the Sons of Garmadon, and we want to pay him back for thinking he's the sole child of Lord Garmadon!" Ultra Violet screeched, now starting to get back to her normal self.

 _That's because he IS my child!_ Garmadon would love to scream at the psychotic woman, but knows he couldn't do it without giving him and his nephew away.

"That may be, but the green ninja is also the leader to the entire ninja team. He could provide both of us with...useful information." The woman turned to Lloyd with a twisted smirk on her face. "With a little _push_ , of course."

Garmadon growled protectively for his son, and nearly lunged at the bikers to tear them apart limb by limb. Morro had to hold his uncle back just to make sure they didn't give themselves away. As much as he wanted the Sons of Darkness to suffer, they needed to stay hidden or they wouldn't be able to save their beloved leader.

"Calm down, Uncle Garmadon. If we get caught, we'll never be able to save Lloyd." This snapped the sensei out of his rage, as he realized his nephew was right.

"Ugh, fine. We have to go to the big man anyway since we got new potential recruits." Ultra Violet groaned.

Garmadon looked across and saw that there were a few crooks not dressed in Sons of Garmadon uniforms. Including Zane.

Morro's eyes widen as he realized what happened back in the club. "Guys, this was Zane's plan. They've gained their trust."

"But they still have Cole...and I don't think Lloyd was part of Zane's plan!" Jay screamed, albeit quietly, to Morro.

Ultra Violet got on her motorcycle with Cole in tow, and the woman got on her own with Lloyd tied to it.

Garmadon's heart clenched as he watched the biker who was now taking his son away to possibly his worst nightmare. His body trembled in so much emotional pain as he feared for Lloyd's safety. " _I-I-It_ can't _b-be..._ "

After a few seconds passed, which seemed more like hours, the destruction elemental forced himself to stay strong. Lloyd wouldn't want that, and he needed to be safe. He narrowed his eyes, glaring angrily at the biker who tore his son away from him. "We need to get him back _now_."

A beep from their communicators got Garmadon and Morro's attention. They quickly turned it on and Pixal's voice is heard through it. "The ninjas had seen what happened at the front of the club. They are already heading there to stop them."

"Can you provide us transportation, Pixal?" Morro anxiously asked as he observed his sister and their friends descending into the streets.

"It is already on your way." Morro hears from a distant an engine roar, and he and Garmadon turned to see something coming their way. It skidded to a halt, creating dust and clouding their visions. Once the view was clear, there were two automated motorcycles, one dark purple and one dark green.

"Perfect. Thanks, Pixal." Morro gave one last message before he got on the dark green motorcycle.

"Normally, I'm not a fan of these high-tech weapons, but my son is in danger, and I'm willing to risk it." Garmadon stated as he got on his new dark purple bike. He put on his visor, which went along with the motorcycle, and prepared to head into the road and get his child back, one way or another.

* * *

 **Elina: Hey, a little author note here that is VERY IMPORTANT! We are taking a different path on our story!**

 **Zena: Yeah. We wanted to do something different from the show.**

 **Elina: The chapters are gonna be longer from now on, but it'll all be worth it. Promise! And thanks for the views, votes, and comments! They make our days well!**

 **Zena: We love you guys! ONI SPECIAL EVENT HYPE (idk what to call it XD) FTW!**

 **Elina: And chapter 11 might come out _very_ soon, so be on the lookout!**

 **Zena and Elina: BYEEEEEEEEEEE!**


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